HIV is not transmissible by people on treatment: GAT and SER+ launch new awareness campaign

22 Maio 2024

Five real-life stories recorded on video make up the new campaign by CAD - Centro Anti-Discriminação VIH e Sida (GAT and SER+), which aims to make known the scientific evidence that people living with HIV do not transmit the virus when they are on treatment, because they have an undetectable viral load.

The HIV and Aids Anti-Discrimination Centre (CAD) is launching a new campaign today highlighting the importance of effective HIV treatment in preventing the transmission of the virus, breaking with the misconception and stigma that people living with HIV transmit the virus even when they are on treatment.

More than 20 years ago, the first scientific studies reported cases of non-transmission of HIV in serodifferent couples (where one partner is living with HIV and the other is not) when the viral load is low. Since then, and especially after the impact of a study published in 2016, widely verified scientific data says unequivocally that when a person living with HIV is on effective treatment, they do not transmit the virus.

This scientific evidence has given rise to the concept of Undetectable = Untransmittable, also known as "i=i". Undetectable means that the viral load, or the amount of virus in the blood, is very low, while Untransmittable means that when the viral load is Undetectable, i.e. suppressed, HIV is not transmitted.

If this scientific fact is still little publicized in the field of HIV, it is practically unknown to the general population. Following the success of the "I am HIV+ and Visible" campaign, launched in 2022, CAD continues to give a voice to people living with HIV and is now giving visibility to social networks, through five honest and open conversations recorded on video, in which couples, work colleagues, friends, family members and health professionals share their experiences and views on living with people living with HIV, highlighting how the scientific evidence "Undetectable = Untransmittable" has changed their lives.

"These talks show that people with HIV are not alone, that information is power and that it is also the responsibility of those not living with HIV to learn more about the virus and to stop prejudice and discrimination once and for all. Effective HIV treatment allows people to live long and healthy lives, avoiding the transmission of the virus through sexual and other routes. Unfortunately, few people share this knowledge," laments João Brito, CAD's coordinator, and explains that "people living with HIV are still discriminated against in many areas because of the fear of HIV that was installed during the dark years of the epidemic, but it's time to break this paradigm".

"Training is also essential to eradicate discriminatory contexts, which is why we have been warning throughout these decades of the importance of the state and institutions investing in training and capacity-building actions, not only for communities living with HIV, but also for the general population, breaking down myths, beliefs and stigmatizing social attitudes," adds Ana Duarte, CAD's coordinator and head of training.

The campaign is available at cad.vih.pt/transmissivel and on the CAD and GAT social networks:

THE REAL STORIES

Rodrigo Malafaia and Leandro Buenno - Love is Transmissible
Story available on May 23rd

Leandro Buenno (30, artist) and Rodrigo Malafaia (33, model) are a serodifferent couple: Leandro has been living with HIV since 2017 and Rodrigo is his HIV-negative husband. The Brazilian couple chose to live in Portugal after spending their honeymoon there. Both have a big presence in the media world: Leandro took part in The Voice Brasil and his coming out had a big impact. As a model and influencer, Rodrigo also impacts lives all over the world.

In this conversation, they explain how the non-transmissibility of the virus has made them live in greater freedom and without fear, further strengthening the love they feel for each other. The visibility they give to their relationship as a couple has become a powerful tool for informing and fighting stigma among thousands and thousands of people around the world.

Paolo Gorgoni and Alaiane Guterres - Safety is transmittable
Story available on May 30th

Paolo Gorgoni (38, artist and activist) and Alaiane Guterres (24, nutritionist) are two work colleagues in the catering industry who met in Lisbon and share not only the common element of being migrants (Paolo is Italian and Alaiane Brazilian), but also their activism and sense of mission in the constant struggle to guarantee human rights. Paolo lives with HIV, Alaiane does not. From Italy to Portugal, Paolo's feminist activism in favor of LGBTI rights and HIV awareness were and are fundamental in the social and community contexts of both countries, as well as in individual contexts.

In their conversation, Paolo and Alaiane demonstrate in a simple and honest way how the shared construction of safe and informed spaces can be the key to people living with HIV feeling free to share their story and (con)live without the constant fear of discrimination.

João Antunes and Cristina Calca - Passion is transmissible
Story available on June 6th

Cristina Calca (53, Associação Abraço employee) and João Paulo Antunes (53, conservation and restoration professional) are a married couple both living with HIV.
They met at the age of 16 and met again 30 years later, with an HIV diagnosis that resulted in a fight for survival that brought them closer together.

In this conversation, they talk about how, despite the fear, current antiretroviral treatments allow them to know that their average life expectancy is similar to that of a person without HIV and how trusting science is the right step towards ending prejudice.

Catarina Esteves and Maria João Brás - Empathy is transmissible
Story available on June 13th

Maria João Brás (51 years old, project coordinator and peer mediator at Associação Positivo) and Catarina Esteves (43 years old, Specialist Mental Health Nurse / HIV consultation at Cascais Hospital) are two historic voices in the fight against discrimination against people living with HIV in Portugal. Maria João is a mother, an activist and is living with HIV, having been diagnosed when she was pregnant with her son in 1995. Catarina Esteves is a health professional who lives without HIV, but who has accompanied hundreds of people and families in this area throughout her professional career of more than 20 years.

Motherhood is one of the main focuses of the conversation they share with us, which takes us on a journey through the very history of the virus in our country - from the profound ignorance and implantation of fear in the 1980s to the present where we finally know that it is possible to grow old with HIV and live a full life as women and mothers - also in terms of pregnancy, childbirth and breastfeeding - thanks to advances in scientific knowledge and the effectiveness of treatments.

Emanuel Caires and Bernardo Silva - Family is transmittable
Story available on June 20th

Emanuel Caires (31, communications assistant at GAT) and Bernardo Silva (32, passenger assistant at Lisbon airport) are from Madeira and have been friends since they were young. Emanuel Caires has been living with HIV since he was 18 and Bernardo followed the spiral of doubts and uncertainties that plagued Emanuel the year he was diagnosed. Despite not living with HIV, Bernardo realized that knowing all the evidence about the virus and giving voice to mutual pride would be fundamental to maintaining this friendship, and he was open to seeking and receiving information. Emanuel, for his part, works as an activist providing information and breaking down stigmas and prejudices about HIV and STIs on social media.

In a social context in which "blood families" are still not a totally safe space for LGBTI people and/or those living with HIV, Emanuel and Bernardo talk to us about how it is possible to choose a family within friendships and how knowledge is fundamental for the empowerment of those who still live under webs of fear and silence.