A recent study has confirmed that a drug designed to prevent the transmission of HIV in the body is highly effective in a real-world setting. The PrEP Impact Trial led by the UK Health Security Agency and the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust investigated the effectiveness of PrEP, a preventative treatment used by 24,000 people across England, making it the largest ever real-world study of its kind. The research demonstrated that the use of PrEP, also known as pre-exposure prophylaxis, significantly decreased the chances of contracting HIV by 86%, although clinical trials had previously suggested a 99% effectiveness rate.
Dr John Saunders, a consultant in sexual health and HIV who worked on the study, expressed satisfaction with the results, stating “this trial has further demonstrated the effectiveness of PrEP in preventing HIV transmission and has, for the first time, shown the protective effect reported by earlier trials but at scale and delivered through routine sexual health services in England.” He did, however, acknowledge that while the drug’s effectiveness had been proven, it was imperative that it was taken correctly to have real-world efficacy.
While many people, including women, are unaware of PrEP’s existence, thousands of individuals are already taking the drug through sexual health clinics. HIV charity the Terrence Higgins Trust applauded the study’s publication but called for greater access to and awareness of the drug, specifically among minority groups. The charity’s head of policy, Debbie Laycock, stated that “many women just don’t know PrEP exists,” urging for its wider availability through pharmacies and online.
Harry Dodd, who has taken part in several PrEP trials, shared his experience with the drug, stating how it has been “empowering” as he no longer fears contracting HIV. The drug has demonstrated individual and public health benefits – the UKSHA stated that the effectiveness of PrEP could assist the government in achieving its goal of zero HIV transmissions by 2030, though it recommended that more people take the drug.
The decision to make PrEP widely accessible on the NHS in England in 2020 was also partly based on earlier findings from this research and outcomes from clinical trials. The results of this study, which was completed in July 2020 at 157 sexual health clinics across the country, were published in the Lancet HIV earlier this week after peer review
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