Px Pulse

In March, initial results from the two open-label trials of the dapivirine vaginal ring (HOPE and DREAM) showed that adherence and efficacy improved over the earlier Phase III trials. Learn more about all these trials at https://www.avac.org/podcast/dapivirine-ring. Meanwhile, The ring is also advancing along the pathway to licensure. If approved, it will be the next major prevention option available since the US FDA approved oral PrEP in 2012\. In this episode, Zeda Rosenberg of the International Partnerships for Microbicides, which developed the ring, explains the latest findings and spells out how, when, where and if the ring might become an available tool. A trial participant and community leader in Uganda, Ruth* pulls back the curtain on the ups and downs of using the ring, and a Ugandan investigator with the REACH study, Carolyne Akello of the Makere University- Johns Hopkins University Research Collaboration, explains the importance of this trial, the next step in testing the potential of this monthly

With more efficacy trials underway today than ever before in HIV prevention research, this episode of Px Pulse zooms in on two that have most recently launched: HPTN 084 and HVTN 705.  Veteran Malawian advocate Maureen Luba, Zimbabwe-based bioethicist Paul Ndebele, and leading scientist Dan Barouch each take up the subject of these trials and share their expertise on what they could mean for prevention nationally, regionally and globally.

In this episode hear about recently published findings from a study out of Rakai, Uganda confirm that scaling up a combination of existing interventions, such as voluntary medical male circumcision and antiretroviral therapy provides protection from HIV at the population-level. How do we apply these findings at the global level? How should advocates prepare for results—anticipated in 2019—of the ECHO trial that’s looking at the effect of hormonal contraceptives on HIV risk? And what needs to happen in 2018 to reach long-term global targets for ending the epidemic?   Building on our advocacy agenda laid out in the December episode of Px Pulse this episode expands on the challenges and possibilities for 2018!

AVAC has just published its annual report on the state of the field. AVAC Report 2017: Mixed Messages and How to Untangle Them. It's a must read for anyone tracking the progress of HIV prevention around the world. In this month’s episode of Px Pulse, AVAC’s Director of Strategy and Content Emily Bass shares major highlights from the report and calls for action on the unfinished work of scaling up prevention. Listen for perspective on a US$ 7 billion funding gap and its impact on prevention, hear how leadership at the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) Division of AIDS (DAIDS) should move forward with their research agenda, and get AVAC’s take on epidemic control. Find related resources at AVAC.org.

Every research trial of a new HIV prevention option offers a package of services to protect participants from HIV. This standard of care is essential to the design of an ethical trial.

Both research and advocacy for HIV prevention are intensifying their focus on young people. Bringing interventions that work for this population holds unique challenges. AVAC’s Manju Chatani-Gada explores how and why prevention research must reach the next generation. You'll hear from two young, South African women at a trial consultation, Sinazo Peter and Anelisa Madalane. And hear from Ntando Yola, a leader in community engagement.

Leading researcher Dr. Deborah Donnell tells us why the HIV Prevention Trials Network (HPTN) changed the design of one of two trials testing long-acting cabotegravir, as an injectable PrEP. Deb Donnell is an expert statistician, one of the great minds behind trial design and one of the best teachers we know.