HIV
Jonathan Van Ness wants you to know what ‘U=U’ means
Jonathan Van Ness has explained the important HIV message U=U – undetectable equals untransmittable – in a new interview. The Queer Eye star publicly opened up about his HIV status in a recent New York Times interview. He also writes about his experience of living with HIV in his new memoir, Over the Top. Now …
UK tabloid revealed rugby star’s HIV status to his parents
Former Welsh rugby player Gareth Thomas has hit out at a UK tabloid reporter who disclosed his HIV status to his parents before he did. The former Wales captain, who came out as gay in 2009, took to Twitter last weekend to reveal he is living with HIV. “I want to share my secret with …
Lesbians and people with HIV wanted for ‘You Can’t Ask That’
The ABC’s eye-opening series You Can’t Ask That is returning next year and producers want lesbian women and people living with HIV to take part. The fascinating show allows people from marginalised or misunderstood groups and communities to answer questions – some ignorant, some well-meaning, some both – that have been submitted anonymously by the …
AskDocQ: What does HIV viral load mean?
You’ve been cruising along with an undetectable HIV viral load for years. Suddenly – the horror – you go to your routine appointment and your doctor tells you there’s an actual detectable number for your virus. Maybe 30, 50 or 100, instead of the usual <20 result. It’s OK your doc says, it’s nothing to …
Syphilis is on the rise in Queensland, but it’s easily treated
The curable bacterial infection syphilis can be life threatening if left untreated and new infections more than doubled in Queensland in the last five years. Gay, bisexual men and other men who have sex with men represented 59% of all new syphilis infections in Queensland in the ten years from 2008 until 2018. The biggest …
Grindr’s Chinese owners agree to sell app by June 2020 after privacy fears
The Chinese owners of Grindr have agreed to sell the gay app by next June after demands from the US government over security and privacy concerns. Grindr calls itself “the world’s largest social networking app for gay, bi, trans and queer people” and claims more than 3 million daily users worldwide. The company is based …
Do you have to tell your boss that you’re HIV positive?
One of the biggest fears of people living with HIV is having to disclose their status to their employer, risking possible discrimination. The good news is that in most professions, you are not legally required to tell an employer, or prospective employer, that you are HIV positive with only a few exceptions, the main one …
Study of nearly 1000 couples confirms ART treatment prevents HIV transmission
A new European study has confirmed that there is zero risk of transmitting HIV to a partner while on effective antiretroviral treatment. The study, called PARTNER2 and published today in journal The Lancet, investigated 972 male couples across Europe where one partner with HIV was receiving treatment to suppress the virus. The study found there …
AskDocQ: U=U means if a person with HIV is undetectable, they can’t pass it on
A person with HIV who is on treatment and is undetectable cannot transmit HIV to their sexual partner. There is no risk. Zero. Brisbane LGBTIQ health specialist Dr Fiona Bisshop explains why. I need to have a rant about U=U and HIV. I’ve written about this before, and sorry for repeating myself, but every time I think …
OPINION: Social media shaming and blaming shows HIV stigma persists
The response on social media last month to a Sydney PrEP user who shared his story of contracting HIV while taking the prevention medication has shown that HIV stigma is still sadly persistent, writes Douglas Billing. After scrolling through threads on social media following the articles that have been published regarding a man who has …