RECENT DEVELOPMENTS COULD FINALLY TURN THE TABLES FOR
GOOD IN THE 30-YEAR WAR AGAINST THE DISEASE. HERE'S WHAT THE LATEST ADVANCES
MEAN FOR BLACK WOMEN
BY KELLEE TERRELL
Body & Spirit| Health Report
Essence Magezine December 2011
Black women are 15 times more likely to be diagnosed with
HIV than White women. And while we make up only 12 percent of the female
population, in 2009 we accounted for 57 percent of all new HIV infections among
U.S. women. But not all the news is bad. "There has been a huge push to
focus resources where the epidemic is by promoting testing and linking people
to care and behavioral interventions," says Kevin Fenton, M.D., director
of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for HIV/AIDS.
Recent breakthroughs hold promise for further reducing the rates of HIV among
Black women.
POWERFUL PROTECTION
A South African study of 900 women found that a vaginal
gel spiked with the HIV medication tenofovir lowered these women's chances of
contracting the disease by 51 percent when inserted in the vagina 12 hours
before intercourse. The gel-one of several microbicides being tested-is
currently undergoing further clinical trials.
WHAT THIS MEANS TO YOU
"Many African-American women
are afraid to discuss condom use with partners because they fear rejection,
abuse or being labeled as promiscuous," says Claire Simon, the cofounder
of the Young Women's HIV/AIDS Coalition in New York City. "A woman-controlled
form of protection would eliminate the negotiation and give women more power
over their bodies."
A PREVENTION PLAN
Pre-exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) involves giving
HIV-negative patient medications to prevent them from contracting the disease.
In July the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released results of two new
studies that showed giving two types of HIV medications to heterosexual HIV-negative
people can decrease their chance of becoming infected By an HIV-positive
partner by up to 63 percent.
WHAT THIS MEANS TO YOU: Oni Blackstock, M.D., of the Yale
School of Medicine notes that PrEP can provide Black women with an alternative
means of HIV protection: "Ongoing trials will help us figure out which
type of PrEP will be most effective," she says.
FREE TESTING
Under the Affordable Care Act, if your insurance coverage
started on March 23, 2010, or later, you aren't responsible for a co- pay when
getting tested for sexually transmitted infections.
WHAT THIS MEANS TO YOU: Many Black women delay finding
out their HIV status, which has often meant by the time they're diagnosed, the disease
has progressed to AIDS. "Black women too often put off their own health
screenings in order to take care of everyone else," says Hilary Beard,
Co-author of Health First! The Black Women's Wellness
Guide (Smileylsooes). "And sometimes we just can't afford see a doctor.
Free preventive testings will help to ensure that we can afford to take care of
ourselves."