Division of AIDS Responds to CHAMP's Call for Additional Resources and Planning for PrEP Trials

By Josh Thomas

In September, the CHAMP Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) Committee called on PrEP research sponsors— National Institutes of Allergies and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Gates Foundation and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID)— to provide resources and strategic planning to ensure concrete outcomes and further study for a PrEP research agenda. See CHAMP News “Pushing for a Plan” October 2008.

Dr. Carl Dieffenbach, Director of the Division of AIDS (DAIDS), responded that the agency “share(s) your concerns and agree(s) with many if not all of your points about the importance of continuing and expanding PrEP research and clinical trials.” DAIDS reported that it has expanded the number of participants in a PrEP trial of men who have sex with men in Africa, Asia and the Americas in order to ensure better trial results. According to the letter, DAIDS is committed to researching how communities will accept and actually use PrEP as an HIV intervention and is collaborating with CDC and UNAIDS to issue recommendations and guidelines for PrEP implementation, should a safe and effective product become available.

Dieffenbach praised the community for its key role in developing meaningful HIV prevention trials. Specifically, CHAMP and our allies helped to facilitate community demand for and involvement in two feasibility studies (HPTN 061 & HPTN O64), which pilot interventions for Black gay men and Black women, respectively.

CHAMP will continue to advocate for a comprehensive research and community engagement agenda for PrEP when it meets with the CDC on November 13.

Click here to read the original letter and DAIDS' response.