The 2018 HIV Research for Prevention Conference (HIVR4P) was held in Madrid, Spain from October 21-25, 2018. The conference supports the exchange of research on HIV vaccines, microbicides, PrEP, treatment as prevention, and other biomedical prevention approaches through a range of engaging plenary sessions, oral/poster sessions, symposia and roundtables, and pre-conference satellite sessions. To view the full conference program, please click here.
CHIPTS hosted a pre-conference satellite session at HIV R4P, entitled “It Only Hurts a Little: Long-Acting Injectables (LAI) for Prevention and Treatment,” that drew an audience of over 150 researchers, policy makers, community advocates, and other key stakeholders. The session included two moderated panels aimed at examining the clinical, behavioral, policy and community considerations associated with the implementation of long-acting injectable antiretrovirals for prevention and treatment. The panels featured leading experts from around the world, including Drs. Linda-Gail Bekker, Beatriz Grinsztejn, Giang Minh Le, Nyaradzo Mgodi, Santiago Moreno, Omar Sued, Ms. Elizabeth Gardiner and Mr. Jonathan Lucas, and moderated by Drs. Raphael Landovitz and Aadia Rana. The satellite session was successful in engaging both panelists and audience in a productive discussion that provided insight into the preparation and considerations for future implementation of LAIs among key populations within different resource settings. To see the agenda, click here. To view photos from the event, click here.
Our Center Co-Director, Dr. Raphael Landovitz, also delivered an exciting plenary presentation on, “Beyond TDF/FTC: The Future of Systemic Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis.” In the U.S., vulnerable populations with minimal adherence and uptake still exist due to social, structural and access obstacles asserting that more choices are important in order to address adherence. Dr. Landovitz discussed the role of maraviroc in HIV therapeutics, citing HPTN 069 as well as the current view of TAF/FTC as a favorable treatment therapy, though its role in prevention is still unclear. He also highlighted the long-acting agents rilpivirine and cabotegravir, stating its efficacy as reported in recent studies.
Our CHIPTS faculty were also involved in a number of scientific presentations at the conference, as listed below:
- Dr. Cathy Reback – “Providing PrEP Navigation to High-risk Populations With Multiple Health Disparities in Los Angeles, CA, USA: A Comparison of MSM and Trans Women”
- Dr. Pamina Gorbach – “Intimate Partner Violence and Engagement in the HIV Care Continuum Among Women in sub-Saharan Africa: A Prospective Cohort Study”
- Dr. Pamina Gorbach – “Online Survey about Reasons for Stopping PrEP is an Opportunity to Re-engage Inactive PrEP Clients”
- Dr. Raphael Landovitz – “Cabotegravir Long-Acting Phase 3 PrEP Dose Selection Based on Population Pharmacokinetics in Healthy and HIV-Infected Adults”
- Dr. Raphael Landovitz – “Shortened Time to ART Initiation in MSM Reduces Risk of HIV-1 Sexual Transmission”
- Dr. Raphael Landovitz – “Tail-Phase Safety, Tolerability and Pharmacokinetics of Long-Acting Injectable Cabotegravir in HIV-Uninfected Individuals: HPTN 077 Final Results”
- Dr. Raphael Landovitz -“Sexual Risk and Study Drug Detection in MSM Participants in a Phase II Study of Maraviroc (MVC) +/- Tenofovir DF (TDF) or FTC versus TDF/FTC for PrEP”
- Drs. Steve Shoptaw and Jesse Clark – “Never Have I Ever: Factors Associated With Never Testing for HIV and With Testing Positive for HIV at First HIV Test in Peruvian MSM and TW”
CHIPTS was proud to be a part of HIVR4P 2018 in a meaningful and impactful way and to contribute to the important data sharing and discussions that occurred at the conference.
We’ll be uploading more photos from the conference in addition to the satellite session photos so make sure to follow us on Facebook or Twitter and don’t forget to subscribe to our listserv to hear about more events like this!