Despite significant progress and resource commitments, the AIDS epidemic in many parts of is strongly impacted by local conditions and communities, and often other overlooked commoner diseases that affect local populations.
At the Global Network, we’re thinking, writing and talking about NTDs throughout the day. We know the ins and outs of how these diseases impact the success of development issues like maternal/child health, food security, and importantly, the effort to prevent and treat other fatal diseases, especially HIV/AIDS.
With the International AIDS Conference taking place in Washington, D.C. this year, we couldn’t help but think about how our passion for controlling and eliminating NTDs is a part of the fight to end HIV/AIDS.
For instance, women with female genital schistosomiasis (FGS) have a three-fold increased risk of contracting HIV/AIDS compared to those without. That’s significant when you consider that up to 100 million women in sub-Saharan Africa could be infected with FGS.
Meanwhile, soil-transmitted helminthes (or intestinal worms) can actually worsen the progression of HIV toward AIDS by increasing viral loads.
We realize that not all of our colleagues in the HIV/AIDS community are fully informed about the links between HIV/AIDS and NTDs. We also know that there’s plenty of room for more research. That’s why we’re hosting a workshop at AIDS 2012 to discuss recent findings and begin the conversation about how the HIV/AIDS and NTD communities can more effectively partner together to combat these two global health issues and create stronger health systems. If you’re attending AIDS 2012, we hope you’ll join us.
Here are the details:
Effective Solutions to Combat HIV/AIDS: Increasing Evidence of NTD Impact on HIV Transmission
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
11:00 AM – 12:30 PM
Mini Room 5
Walter E. Washington Convention Center
Moderators:
- Dr. Neeraj Mistry, Managing Director, Global Network for NTDs at the Sabin Vaccine Institute
- Dr. Giuseppe Pantaleo, Chief, Division of Immunology and Allergy, University of Lausanne
Speakers:
- Dr. Christoph Benn, Director for the External Relations and Partnerships Cluster, Global Fund for AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria
- Dr. Lee Hall, Chief of the Parasitology and International Programs Branch, National Institute for AIDS and Infectious Diseases
- Dr. Pontiano Kaleebu, Director MRC/UNRI Uganda Research Unit on AIDS
- Dr. Astrid-Christina Koch, Science Counsellor at the EU Delegation, Delegation of the European Union to the United States of America
- Dr. Hiro Nakatani, Assistant Director-General, World Health Organization
- Dr. Maria Aparecida Shikanai Yasuda, Faculty of Medicine, University of Sao Paulo
This workshop is open to those attending the AIDS2012 Conference. If you are not attending the conference, we’ll be sure to share outcomes from the workshop on the blog. Or, sign up for email updates from us – to hear the news straight away!
