'HIV 2008: Diagnosis' European summit: Diagnose earlier and improve treatment
Logo VIH 2008
© Ministère de la santé
- On: 21.11.2008
- In: Paris, Hôtel Hilton Suffren
If the main aim in the early Eighties was to contain the epidemic and protect sufferers from severe prejudice, today it is to diagnose the disease as early as possible in order to make the treatment more effective. Although testing is free, accessible and frequently used in many countries including France, there are still many late diagnoses because there are still several reasons that lead people to defer HIV testing. The objective is to persuade people who would not normally do so to go for testing in a specialised centre or to ask their GP to prescribe a test, as soon as they have taken the slightest risk. In France alone, around 36,000 people are thought to be unaware that they are infected with HIV and 200,000 in Europe. Current testing programs don't reach these people. We must therefore reconsider our attitude to testing.
The summit's steering committee is made up of leading figures from the medical world and non-governmental organisations, and has decided to explore possible changes and conduct a debate between the French and foreign experts on hand to share their experiences and their ideas. Although significant progress has been made in the last 25 years, it is widely agreed that there is still room for improvement, though this means changing the way we think and act.
The 2008 HIV Diagnosis summit is for professionals and patients' associations only. If you want to attend, please contact:
Press contact
Hill & Knowlton
Nabila Bouzouina & Jennifer Barth
Tel. +33 1 41 05 44 59
jennifer.barth @ hillandknowlton.com
Participants' contact
Hill & Knowlton
Nabila Bouzouina & Dominique Jeant
Tel. +33 1 41 05 44 66
dominique.jeant @ hillandknowlton.com
For more information about the conclusions of these discussions after the summit
- Updated: 28.12.2008
