Doctors Laud Pia Wurtzbach’s Support for HIV Prevention
By: InterAksyon.com
January 29, 2016 1:59 AM
Doctors belonging to the Philippine College of Physicians Foundation are lauding reigning Miss Universe Pia Wurtzbach for taking up the HIV prevention advocacy as her mission because this will greatly help generate awareness of the problem.
Dr. Anthony Leachon, president of the Philippine College of Physicians (PCP) Foundation, said Pia can be most effective if she will partner with professional societies like the PCP and HIV advocacy groups to leverage her world-wide popularity to raise awareness about the epidemic, neutralize its stigma, and save lives.
“The first cases of HIV in the Philippines were diagnosed in 1984. Between 1984 and 2005, HIV case rates locally were some of the lowest in the world, with about one case diagnosed every two days. Since 2006, the number of newly-diagnosed HIV-positive Filipinos has skyrocketed. From one case a day in 2006, we now have an average of one new case an hour,” said Dr. Edsel Maurice T. Salvana, director of the Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology, National Institute of Health in the University of the Philippines Manila.
The World Health Organization (WHO) reported that the Philippines has the fastest growing AIDS epidemic in the world.
Salvana, who is the leading expert on HIV in the Philippines and a TOYM awardee, said the epidemic is currently concentrated in men-who-have-sex-with-men (MSM) but is poised to spill over into the general population as the proportion of HIV-positive MSMs has gone above five percent nationwide.
“This phenomenon is not confined to Metro Manila. In fact the highest prevalence of HIV in MSM in the Philippines is Cebu, at 14%, followed by Cagayan de Oro at 9.3%. Puerto Princesa is at 7.7% and Quezon City is at 7.4%. We are currently seeing more and more HIV-positive women, including pregnant women,” Salvana explained.
Leachon said the best strategy to defeat the epidemic is education, early testing, and early treatment.
“Awareness of the problem is important, and getting tested for HIV should be a routine part of medical care. Stigma can be overcome by strong education and support from government. Media and celebrity endorsements are powerful tools for spreading the message to prevent infection and get tested early and often if you are at risk,” added Leachon.
Salvana observed that the age of diagnosis is likewise becoming younger, with the current mean age at 27 years old, and over 30% of new diagnoses are in the 15-24 age group.
At the current levels of increase, the DOH anticipates that the number of HIV-positive Filipinos will reach 133,000 by 2022 from the current 29,706.
The doctors said HIV is no longer a death sentence. They cited effective medical treatment, termed antiretrovirals (ARV), and this is available for free from HIV treatment hubs all over the Philippines. They said early diagnosis and start of treatment can restore life expectancy.
HIV progresses to AIDS in about eight to ten years. The only way to diagnose someone infected with HIV who is not yet in full-blown AIDS is through a blood test.
“A Filipino who is diagnosed with full-blown AIDS is six times more likely to die than someone who is diagnosed with HIV early and started on ARVs. On top of this, ARVs decrease the risk of transmitting HIV to a sexual partner by more than 96%. All these information can now reach the necessary audience with the help of Pia and other celebrities who are willing to take up the same advocacy,” Salvana said.