Truvada Essay

According to the FDA, Truvada is being approved with a training and education program to “minimize the risk to uninfected individuals of acquiring HIV infection and to reduce the risk of development of resistant HIV-1 variants” ("FDA Approves First Drug for Reducing the Risk of Sexually Acquired HIV Infection"). The purpose of this program is to provide vital information about the importance of adhering to the dosage regimen and the possible risks of contracting HIV while taking Truvada, not to limit distribution. Patients who receive Truvada will be expected to participate in a comprehensive HIV protection plan that involves regular HIV testing, condom use and prevention counseling and support. Dr. Grant believes that “engagement, which also
For example, if an HIV positive user took Truvada or if a user became infected while on the prescription, there’s a possibility that their HIV strain will become drug-resistant, making it harder to treat and increasing the risk of it spreading to others. In order to prevent drug resistance, Truvada users will have to be HIV negative before taking the medication and be retested regularly, every few months. Although this may be helpful, the experts that testified before the FDA panel of advisors about the approval of Truvada “acknowledged that there is no way to ensure that people taking the drug receive frequent HIV tests” (Grady). In some cases, patients have entered Truvada trials, unaware that they are HIV positive because the onset of the disease was too early to be detected by a blood test. These particular subjects “showed a small amount of drug resistance, which is why the FDA now requires doctors to conduct an HIV test before putting their patients on PrEP” (Glazek). This particular claim is stronger than ones such as Dr. Grant’s because it has a stronger appeal to