Peter Piot - The Future of HIV

Looking back at the early stages of HIV and AIDS, there is no doubt that enormous progress has been made. HIV is not a death sentence anymore and people living with HIV can live a similar life to people who don't have HIV. Despite its progress, experts are warning that there is a danger of backsliding, due to what they call, “Complacency” and “an overemphasis on treatment at the expense of prevention.”

On today’s episode, my guest, Peter Piot, discusses the reality of HIV and what the future brings.

Peter Piot is a world-renowned Belgian microbiologist, known for his research into Ebola and AIDS. After helping discover the Ebola virus in 1976 and leading efforts to contain the first-ever recorded Ebola epidemic that same year, Peter Piot became a pioneering researcher into AIDS. He was the founding Executive Director of UNAIDS, and Under Secretary-General of the United Nations from 1995 until 2008. Under his leadership, UNAIDS became the chief advocate for worldwide action against AIDS, spearheading UN reform by bringing together 10 UN system organizations. During his career, professor Piot has received numerous awards for his contributions to global health, including the Bloomberg Hopkins 100 Award, the Hideyo Noguchi Africa Prize, the Prince Mahidol Award for Public Health and the Canada Gairdner Global Health Award. He was the 2014 Time - Person of the Year, and has published more than 550 scientific articles, and 17 books, including his memoirs, "No Time to Lose: A Life in Pursuit of Deadly Viruses.” Peter Piot has made huge contributions to HIV and AIDS research and played a leading role in the global response to the AIDS epidemic, especially in Africa. Today he's the director of the world-renowned London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

So, listen to Episode 01 of Positively Alive, to find out how far are we from a functional cure, what are the problems with funding the HIV and also, Peter’s opinion on stigma.

Questions I ask:

• What is your view on the complacency and overemphasis on treatment at the expense of prevention? (03:19)
• Do you believe that people tend to forget that HIV will be with us for generations to come? (05:17)
• How far are we really from a functional cure and a vaccine against HIV? (09:15)
• How has AIDS been a catalyst for the rise of global health as a multi-disciplinary field of study and practice? (18:24)
• What would you describe as your major accomplishments at the helm of UNAIDS? (26:53)
• What is the role that UNAIDS will play in the near future? (28:44)
• Given the enormity of what you have accomplished, is there really anything that you could have done differently? (32:12)

In this episode, you will learn:

• How realistic it is to get everybody on treatment. (06:43)
• What PREP is and how efficient it is. (08:20)
• The 90-90-90 objective. (13:02)
• The trouble with funding for HIV. (15:24)
• HIV and stigma– the paradox between the fact that progress has been made with HIV but the depression and anxiety rates are still growing. (21:46)
• The importance of the studies that show that undetectable is untransmittable. (24:57)

Resources mentioned:

• Book: No Time to Lose: A Life in Pursuit of Deadly Viruses
• UNAIDS website

Studies mentioned:

• Opposites attract
• Partner 1
• Partner 2

 

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