Tackling the HIV virus — which sneakily evades the immune system — has been an incredibly complex puzzle for the scientific community. It has required massive investments, expansive collaborations, and the dedication of some of the world’s sharpest minds — committed to the cause over decades.
And now the world is equipped with many of the tools that could help bring this epidemic to an end — treatments, the ability to prevent transmission from mother to child, pre- and post-virus exposure prophylaxis, and a breakthrough six-month injectable prevention method, among other interventions.
“The potential is in our grasp to end a pandemic and in the process, stop the needless [infections] and deaths that continue to impact millions each year,” said Dr. Beatriz Grinsztejn, president of the International Aids Society, during her organization’s conference in Kigali this week.