A new HIV-preventing drug is to become available for a trial period on the NHS after a court decision at the High Court today.
Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) will be trialled for three years beginning next month, initially rolling out to 10,000 participants through a network of sexual health clinics in London, Manchester, Brighton, Liverpool and Sheffield.
The trial will include men, women and transgender individuals as well as those with HIV-positive partners.
The National AIDS Trust (NAT) had been fighting for the trial for several years and won its case with the High Court. The NHS had opposed the trial because of perceived cost issues.
"We already know that PrEP brings down rates of HIV infection, changing lives for those at risk and saving public money," said Deborah Gold, chief executive of NAT.
"We now need to work with NHS England, local authorities, and the sexual health sector to make sure the widest possible range of eligible people at high risk of HIV have access to the trial."
Deborah Gold of the National AIDS Trust. Credit: PA
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She continued: "We will continue to monitor the uptake of PrEP, aiming to learn as much as possible about how to get PrEP to all those who need it most.
"This is a pivotal moment in the fight against HIV. PrEP, if targeted properly at those in need and at high risk of HIV, offers the possibility of transforming the English HIV epidemic.
"From September, people at high risk of HIV will have access via the NHS in England to an empowering new tool that is truly individual controlled and not subject to negotiation with a partner, leading to the improvement of many, many lives. We warmly welcome this announcement."
Ian Green, chief executive of the Terrence Higgins Trust, which fights sexual heath rights and the rights of those with AIDS and HIV, echoed the National AIDS Trust:
"We're pleased that NHS England has announced a start date for the much anticipated PrEP trial. This PrEP trial has been gaining momentum in England, and is vital as we work towards ending HIV transmissions across the UK.
"The priority must now be to make sure that the trial reaches everyone at risk of HIV, and that it is rolled out speedily across the whole country, by the end of this year at the very latest.
"Now that the PrEP trial drug has been procured, we're well on the way to protecting over 10,000 people at risk of HIV.
"To make sure no-one at risk of HIV is left behind, it is crucial that at the end of this trial in three years time, a clear process for routinely commissioning PrEP on the NHS is agreed."
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Source: the Metro