Emily Land

Over the years, HIV has evolved into a chronic condition necessitating life-long medication. Now, researchers are studying the efficacy and acceptability of long-acting HIV medications that may keep thevirus under control for a month or longer. Can long-acting therapies provide an alternative to daily dosing? And, what do people who stand to benefit from this way of dosing think about the possibility of not having to take daily oral medications? “HIV has been part of my life for 33 or 34 years, and medication for almost 20,” said Efrén Solanas, a long-term survivor in the Bay Area. “I’ve been taking […]

There’s a new antiretroviral, from a new class of medication, currently being tested for both PrEP and HIV treatment. Named islatravir (formerly MK-8591), this Merck drug is showing promise as part of a novel drug delivery system and because of its long half-life, great potency and high barrier for resistance. Two presentations at the IAS 2019 conference in July shared Phase 2 study data on islatravir. Randolph Matthews, MD, PhD shared research of islatravir delivered through an under-the-skin implant, to test drug delivery at concentrations needed for the prevention of HIV. Professor Jean-Michel Molina, from Paris Diderot University, shared results from a […]

J Black transgender women have one of the highest rates of HIV of any population in the U.S., with one study estimating an HIV prevalence rate of 56%. Yet the extent to which Black trans women are able to access HIV testing, treatment and care has not been well characterized. HIV and epidemiology data oftentimes lump relatively small numbers of trans women in with a much larger community of men who have sex with men—obscuring the experiences Black trans women have getting diagnosed and linked to care. Now, a recent study highlights the startling disparities Black trans women experience in HIV diagnosis and care. In a […]

Testing for HIV is fast, confidential and freely available in many areas across the U.S. Yet an estimated 15% of people living with HIV—about 162,500 people—are living with HIV but have not received an HIV diagnosis. The CDC estimates that more than half of American adults have never been tested for HIV. What keeps people from finding out they are living with HIV, and what can we do to improve HIV testing rates everywhere? Research by Ananda Ganguly and Joshua Tasoff from Claremont McKenna College sheds light on one reason why people living with HIV may not get tested: some […]

The number of HIV infections happening in San Francisco continues to decline, with a record low number of HIV infections occurring in 2017 than ever before. The rate of decline, however, is slowing.  As new data from the 2017 HIV Epidemiology Annual Report reveals, homeless people, people of color, trans women and people who use injection drugs are particularly affected.   “San Francisco has made incredible progress over the last decade reducing the number of new HIV infections. More people know their HIV status than ever before, and a greater share of people living with HIV are virally suppressed,” said […]

Integrase inhibitors—potent antiretrovirals that quickly and powerfully suppress HIV—have allowed HIV researchers and clinicians to explore dosing regimens that involve fewer than three or four drugs. Proponents of dual therapy say that effective regimens involving fewer drugs will lower costs, decrease pill burden and reduce the potential for drug-drug interactions and side effects. But is it that simple? Monica Gandhi, MD, MPH “Two-drug regimens are exciting,” said Monica Gandhi, MD, MPH, medical director of the Ward 86 HIV clinic at San Francisco General Hospital and associate division chief of the Division of HIV, Infectious Diseases, and Global Medicine at UCSF. […]