Nation urged to advance HIV/AIDS care

Four decades since China reported its first HIV/AIDS case, the country has made remarkable progress in curbing transmission of the virus and enhancing diagnosis and treatment of the infection, according to experts.

They emphasized the need to further intensify efforts as the nation works toward achieving new targets by 2030, including keeping the overall infection rate below 0.2 percent and expanding access to effective treatment.

In 1985, a foreign traveler in China was diagnosed with the infection, prompting the country to take strong measures to control the virus from spreading.

Xia Gang, deputy director of the National Disease Control and Prevention Administration, said that over the past 40 years, China has largely halted HIV transmission through blood transfusions, effectively controlled mother-to-child transmissions, and curbed the spread of the virus via injection drug use.

"The diagnosis rate among infected individuals has been steadily improving, with both treatment coverage and viral suppression rates now exceeding 95 percent. Overall, China's HIV/AIDS epidemic remains consistently under control at a low prevalence level," he said during an event held last week ahead of World AIDS Day, which is observed annually on Dec 1.

Han Mengjie, chief HIV/AIDS control expert at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, said that early-generation laboratory tests could only detect an infection eight to 10 weeks after exposure. Newer reagents have now shortened that window to two to three weeks, while nucleic acid testing enables detection within seven to 10 days.

Furthermore, rapid testing kits have made it possible to deliver results within 30 minutes in private settings, using not only blood but also oral fluid or urine samples.

"Advances made in testing technologies and strategies allow us to identify infections earlier and intervene sooner," he said. "The development of domestically produced urine-based self-test kits has also gained international recognition, helping protect privacy and encouraging at-risk individuals to get tested voluntarily."

Li Taisheng, head of the infectious disease department at Peking Union Medical College Hospital, recalled that previously, infected individuals had to take multiple pills each day, often with severe side effects.

"Most patients in China now only need to take one pill once a day," Li said, adding that an adjustment of treatment regimens based on domestic clinical research has helped save 420 million yuan ($59 million) in costs over the past four years.

He added that the mortality rate among AIDS patients in China has dropped 86 percent compared with 2003, while the success rate among the 1.3 million individuals currently under treatment has reached 96 percent.

Nevertheless, HIV/AIDS remains a serious public health challenge both in China and across the globe. According to UNAIDS, the United Nations agency dedicated to fighting HIV/AIDS, 40.8 million people worldwide are living with HIV, with 1.3 million new infections recorded last year and about 9.2 million people still not accessing treatment.

China's Vice-Premier Liu Guozhong said on Monday that factors contributing to the spread of HIV in China are complex and varied, highlighting the significance of unwavering efforts in prevention and control.

It is essential to further strengthen targeted awareness campaigns and comprehensive interventions, rigorously advance testing and monitoring, enhance prevention and control measures for key populations and regions, and improve treatment outcomes, Liu said.

Efforts should also be made to promote breakthroughs in key technological research and strengthen experience-sharing exchanges, he added.

Peng Liyuan, wife of President Xi Jinping and a World Health Organization goodwill ambassador for tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS, shared her experience and reflections from 20 years of involvement in HIV/AIDS prevention and awareness work, during an event held recently.

She also participated in a community HIV/AIDS awareness campaign and visited frontline workers and volunteers, encouraging concerted efforts to achieve the shared vision of zero new HIV infections, zero discrimination and zero AIDS-related deaths.

wangxiaoyu@chinadaily.com.cn