Microbicides

Mark Colvin, the host of PM, an Australian radio show, sat down with Dr. Susan Hillier, a US scientist and professor at the University of Pittsburgh, who is in Australia to attend the annual Australasian Society for HIV medicine conference and the Australian Sexual Health conference. She discusses the increased transmission of HIV/AIDS to women through their husbands where traditional prevention methods such abstinence and even condoms don't work. She says: Whether you're in Zimbabwe or you're in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, women are thunderstruck when they learn that their husband or their boyfriend has actually infected them with HIV because they did not perceive themselves to be at risk. I think one of the great lessons of the HIV epidemic is that HIV goes to the unlucky, not to people who do wrong. That was actually said to me by young women in Malawi in Africa. It was said that for the first time she understood when her sister was infected that the virus, even though her sister was married and did not perceive herself to be at risk, the virus went to those who really had no way to see it coming. And to me it's a very democratic virus. She points to the fact that many men do not perceive themselves as gay because they also sleep with women. She fails to mention that a lot of men do not perceive themselves as gay because of the stigma of being gay. They would rather live secret lives and put their wives at risk than come out and say they are gay. What I do agree with is that she is empowering women to take control of their lives. She discusses microbicides as the next wave of prevention and believes that through education and a paradigm shift in how women think about sex and their husbands, the transmission of HIV/AIDS will decrease. The Body.com defines what a microbicide is: A microbicide is any substance that can substantially reduce transmission of sexually transmitted infections, including HIV, when it is applied in the vagina or rectum. A microbicide could be produced as a gel, cream, film, suppository, sponge, vaginal (or rectal) rings or wipes. Condoms are seen as a man's responsibility and when women are in what they think are trusting monogamous relationships, they are vulnerable to HIV/AIDS. Microbicides given them control and responsibility for their bodies. The short-term goal is to get women educated on the risks within their relationships and marriages and the long-term goal is to create a society where men do not feel ashamed to hide their homosexuality. For full interview click here. Global Campaign For Microbicides