Clearly, 1996 will forever be remembered as the year of the protease inhibitor. There has been such a buzz, so much press, a bit of hype, and much legitimate excitement revolving around these new drugs. From the early days of Invirase / saquinavir (January­February) through the troubled introdu
On Tuesday evening, October 22, Dr. Mark Katz, Being Alive s Medical Advisor, hosted our 100th Medical Update. To honor this milestone, Dr. Katz assembled a panel of some of the most prominent aids physicians in Los Angeles. He asked each to take a specific topic and discuss where we might be headed in the next 2-5 yea
Studies of protease inhibitors and non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NNRTIs) have begun to answer key questions about the treatment of hiv infection. It is tempting to wish for precise, cook-book style instructions, such as exactly when to start therapy, which are the best drugs to combine, and when ther
Agouron Pharmaceuticals has announced the availability of its new and not-yet-FDA-approved protease inhibitor nelfinavir (brand name Viracept ). They have set up an expanded access program for people with advanced hiv disease who have exhausted all current protease inhibitor treatmen
On Tuesday evening, October 22, Dr. Mark Katz will host Being Alive s 100th Medical Update at the Writers Guild Theater, eight and a half years after he hosted the very first Medical Update on February 22, 1988. The overall topic of this 100th Update will be Where Are We Going-In the Next 2 Years? The Next 5? Dr. Katz
Have you ever used drugs in conjunction with sex? Apparently you re not alone. A sample of the men at Christopher Street West last June showed us that 25% had used one particular drug-crystal methamphetamine-within the last six months. I believe we gay men have always used drugs and alcohol as a coping mechanism to dea
* Program Changes It is clear that the recent developments in effective AIDS treatments are changing the face of the epidemic as we know it. AIDS service organizations nation-wide have reported a change in the types and frequency of services and programs which their members and clients are accessing and requesting. Bei
presented by Mark Katz, MD and reported by Jim Stoecker
* All About Nevirapine Nevirapine (brand name Viramune ) is the latest antiviral to be approved by the FDA . This drug is a reverse transcriptase (RT) inhibitor; it works at the same point of the viral life cycle as AZT ,
Californians have an opportunity to take a small but historic step on November 5. They can pass Proposition 215, the Medical Marijuana Initiative, and thus permit seriously ill persons to use marijuana in their treatment without fear of legal penalty or harassment. Thousands of PWAs will benefit directly, and all of us
Although good news from the International AIDS Conference in Vancouver has inspired renewed hope within the hiv/aids arena, there is a growing concern that prevention efforts may begin to wane once people believe that a cure is at hand. A vital question demands further exploration: What are the options for the growing
This question dominated the news from the Vancouver International aids Conference this summer. The very asking of it is controversial for fear that it raises cruelly false hopes, distracts attention from more pressing research or ignores those with advanced disease and years of drug therapy already. Once posed, however
Although much of the talk in Vancouver was of viral loads and newer antiretroviral therapies, opportunistic infections were also discussed. There was relatively little new treatment information this year. Rather, much of the discussion focused on prophylaxis for OIs and the cost of such prophylaxis. Two Key Studies of
On August 23, the Food and Drug Administration granted accelerated approval for the commercial distribution of Serono Laboratories Serostim (somatotropin), a human growth hormone for the treatment of aids-related wasting syndrome. Wasting in people with aids is a strong predictor of disease progression and death. In va
presented by Mark Katz MD and reported by Jim Stoecker
* Viral Load Issues As we have mentioned in past updates, a consensus is building that the goal of antiviral therapy is to get the viral load down as low as possible for as long as possible. But how low is low? In the past, with the first generation of viral load tests, a count of less than 5000 viral copies per unit o
It seems so simple: What s the best diet for people living with hiv/aids? I m asked that question a lot, and I tend to give answers that start the same way: It depends. Depends on what?-that s the real question. The Bathroom Answer If you are hiv+ and have diarrhea, your best diet is one that contains no fruits, vegeta
Don t take more than 1000 mg/day of Clarithromycin (Biaxin)! As a result of activist pressure at the Vancouver conference, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) sent out a clinical alert to all physicians on July 23. A clinical trial comparing different doses of clarithromycin to other drugs for prophylaxis or treatm
I want to talk about a topic that might have an even bigger impact on society than the speculation about wonder drugs. This is the fact that we are finally seeing some data to rectify the criminal absence of any real research about the course of AIDS in the bodies of women. I don t just mean transmission of HIV, althou
There was a whole track devoted to women at this year s conference, encompassing several hundred oral, poster and plenary presentations. The good news is that research on women is finally increasing. Unfortunately, this has not yet resulted in many definitive clinical interventions for women. Most of the studies on wom
Escrito por William Strain, Educador sobre Tratamientos, APLA y Ruben Gamundi, Director del Programa de Educacion sobre Tratamientos, APLA
Saquinavir ( Invirase ) Invirase, tambien conocido como saquinavir , es el primero de una nueva clase de medicamentos, conocidos como inhibidores de la proteasa, en ser aprobado por la Direccion de Medicinas y Alimentos ( FDA , en i
On July 16 the California AIDS Drug Assistance Program announced that it was adding the three FDA-approved protease inhibitors to its formulary (the list of drugs it agrees to cover). This is most welcome news, for the excitement over the powerful effects of protease inhibitors has been tempered by the concern that the
Renter Assistance Reminder Since I mentioned Renter Assistance in the last issue, more than 400 of you have requested the claim form! That s kept me busy and out of trouble, but I want to remind you that September 3 is the deadline for filing so if you haven t done it yet, hop to! And if you don t yet have a claim form
Patrick Edington first came to Being Alive as a favor to me. Being Alive had just re-designed its logo and needed someone to incorporate it into the letterhead, business cards, and other printed materials. Patrick had been a trusted friend for over five years and was owner of a growing graphic design firm in West Holly
Overwhelming: Vancouver was an experience! In the 60s this type of event was called a Happening. What was so Happening about Vancouver? Protease inhibitors, other new drugs, and newer, mostly higher expenses. And Activism. Also, it was quite a Names Project (no disregard to the Quilt). Each new drug seems to have two o
Yes, PWK is still here! Though we haven t made a contribution to this newsletter for a while, we plan on printing updates more regularly from now on. This summer s Quarterly Forum was held on July 15. The theme was What is the new standard of care? According to Dr. Paul Turner, new standards will be created shortly and
Two months have gone by since our last update and there is much to report. At the June 21 PacifiCare HIV Task Force Meeting, Client Case Manager Joy Luque discussed the final completion of the HIV/AIDS Standards of Care Manual. Also announced: Thrifty Long Term Care Pharmacies specializes in serving patients that are h
The XI International Conference on AIDS has thrown us all a curve. The good news is we might live. The bad news is we might live, might actually have to readjust to thinking of ourselves as having a normal lifespan, with the required activities of work, rent payments, relationships that go full-term. The wonderful poss
While protease inhibitors captured the Conference spotlight, another new class of antiviral drugs was shown to have a significant impact upon HIV infection: non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors. In order to replicate once inside a CD4 cell, HIV depends upon several enzymes that it brings into the cell or mak
On July 20, over 100 people living with KS, their significant others and healthcare workers gathered for the first ever community forum of its type. Living with KS: Information and Support for Those Impacted by Kaposi s Sarcoma included speakers discussing causes, treatments, and new therapies for KS, as well as emotio
(I recently had a conversation about side effects with a friend who had participated in one of the Phase III studies of intravenous IL-2 . In the course of this one year therapy, his CD4 count went from around 275 to asustained level of 725, a remarkable rise. Throughout the study he was on antiretroviral
On the second afternoon of the International Conference a meeting was held with the decidedly intriguing title Immune Reconstitution. Unfortunately, the content of the meeting failed to live up to the promise of its title. The exciting notion of reconstituting an HIV-damaged immune system is an idea way ahead of the sc
Most readers have heard a lot by now about the XIth International Conference on AIDS in Vancouver and most have probably been affected by the strong message of new hope that was conveyed by the mass media and returning delegates. Many have also raised skeptical eyebrows, along with questions like: We ve heard all this
Most of you readers of Being Alive are, like me, already infected and living with HIV/AIDS. We know how devastating the disease is, and we generally act as best we can to prevent others from catching it, from us or others. And the preponderance of Being Alive s readers are-like me-gay, living in the context of a very d
It is not only the medical landscape of AIDS that is changing. The Vancouver conference seemed to certify a profound transformation in the social nature of the epidemic, a shift that started six months ago when the first protease inhibitors reached the market. People who had been planning to die sooner rather than lat
I was one of the over 15,000 people attending the XI International Conference on AIDS in Vancouver last month. This being my first one, I really did not know what to expect. I figured there would be a really optimistic tone to the proceedings, as the local news sources were filled with glowing reports about
Recent advances in the understanding of viral dynamics of HIV infection based on mathematical modeling have spurred even more intensive research efforts toward the discovery and development of novel antiretroviral compounds. This first of a two part article will briefly summarize the development status of such compound
We ve been hearing for some time that the best strategy for treating HIV infection is to hit the virus early and hard. Dr. David Ho and others have shown that starting antiviral therapy at the very earliest stages of infection has dramatic results, possibly even permitting the eradication of HIV from the body entirely.
On July 16, Being Alive and LA Shanti presented a panel discussion of the previous week s International Conference on AIDS in Vancouver. Dr. Mark Katz, Being Alive s medical advisor, served as moderator and presented information on the importance of viral load tests. Dr. Michael Gottlieb, a 1994 recipient of the Being
Physician Experience and PWA Survival A few years back we talked about a study that showed survival for hospitalized people with AIDS increased with the experience that the hospital had with treating PWAs. Now a report in the New England Journal of Medicine (March 14, 1996) looks at the impact that a primary care physi
As a service to our readers, we are printing the Special Alert from Project Inform titled Critical Information about the Availability and Use of Indinavir ( Crixivan ) and Ritonavir ( Norvir ) (see page 4).
This information is designed to support, not replace, the relationship that exists between you and your doctor.