FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
DECEMBER 16, 2011
Contact: Peter Kronenberg, pkronenberg@napwa.org, 240.247.1025

The National Association of People With AIDS (NAPWA) salutes this morning's publication of a new study, The Setpoint Study (ACTG A5217): Effect of Immediate Versus Deferred Antiretroviral Therapy on Virologic Set Point in Recently HIV-1-Infected Individuals, in The Journal of Infectious Diseases. The study finds that individuals newly infected with HIV-1 have better medical outcomes if they start treatment with anti-retroviral drugs (ARVs) immediately than if they delay treatment until CD4+ T-cell counts fall below set thresholds.

"This is very welcome news," said Frank J. Oldham, NAPWA President and CEO. "The study supplies scientific confirmation of something we at NAPWA have always believed: the closer we can come to bringing all people living with HIV into treatment, and the earlier they start treatment, the better. We already knew this is true for populations as a whole: more and earlier treatment means fewer new infections. Now we know that - on the whole - it's also better for individuals already infected."

"This study has important public policy implications," added NAPWA Executive Vice President for Treatment Advocacy Stephen Bailous. "It is one more piece of evidence that it is more cost-effective for the public sector and the economy as a whole to test routinely and treat early than to let HIV go undetected and untreated and progress to AIDS.

"But let's be cautious," said Bailous, "in how we turn knowledge into public action. We see three areas of concern.

"First, we must never make testing and immediate treatment compulsory. Whether and when to start treatment is an individual decision. Some people newly diagnosed with HIV have valid medical reasons for waiting. Others may have personal reasons for not starting treatment, like gay teens who are not out to their families and don't want to take ARVs home and have to tell their parents what they are for.

"Second, we know now that we can end the epidemic, but we also know it will take significant new public funding to get the job done. We need to fund prevention, testing, treatment, and the support services that give them a chance to work, at levels that meet the real need. Knowing what we know today, there's no excuse for ADAP waiting lists.

"Finally, we have to end the HIV stigma, homophobia, and counterproductive HIV transmission laws that make people afraid to get tested and know their status. Only then will we get the full benefit of our new knowledge that treatment is prevention in populations and early treatment usually means better outcomes for individuals. We have work to do."

About NAPWA
NAPWA is today and has been for 25 years the oldest, most trusted voice for saving and improving the lives of people impacted by HIV/AIDS. Founded as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization in 1983, NAPWA advocates for the lives and dignity of all people living with HIV/AIDS, especially the 1.2 million Americans who live with it today. We want the epidemic to end, and we want life to be better for people with HIV until it does. NAPWA is based in Silver Spring, Maryland. More information is available at www.napwa.org.