Humanity must focus on fastening confidence in science. People need to explain how knowledge develops through the accumulation of reliable data, which, in its turn, can influence clinical and medical research. Therefore, long-term involvement and investment in sentinel surveillance and basic science is the basis for improving preparedness for future pandemics. This was presented by Anthony Fauci, Chief Medical Adviser to the President of the United States of America, at a parallel session of the United Nations High-level Meeting on AIDS.
As part of the discussion “Science, HIV and COVID-19. Where are we headed?” Fauci said the COVID-19 pandemic has taught lessons of the effectiveness and acceleration of the transformation of basic science into actionable interventions. However, humanity must solve the problems of access, pricing and social bias that constrain global development. Anthony Fauci concluded that both the HIV pandemic and the COVID-19 pandemic can strengthen the global community. He promised that the United States will be a world leader and reliable partner in this endeavor.
“We must ensure that we reach all sectors of our local and global communities, especially those that are skeptical, disadvantaged or historically exploited,”he stressed out.
Given the complex and multifaceted nature of the global AIDS response, science has been a constant force shaping and adapting the world’s response. A similar role for science has been seen in another ongoing pandemic, COVID-19. The parallel event provided an opportunity to discuss the role of science and consider the main and emerging scientific topics that will influence the trajectory of the HIV pandemic as we approach 2030.
Other panelists noted declines in new HIV infections in several locations such as London, Denmark and Australia. There, pre-exposure prophylaxis, as well as effective testing and treatment, really work for gay men and other men who have sex with men. Infectionist Greg Millett, vice president of amfAR, highlighted the importance of the latest scientific advances that have led to new technologies such as HIV self-testing and new PrEP methods.
The main theme of the discussion about the role of science in the fight against epidemiological threats has developed around the category of justice. For both COVID-19 and HIV, participants noted the need to ensure that all people in all countries have access to science. Audience commentators confirmed that this is even more important given the participation of so many people from many countries as altruistic participants in a study that has led to new HIV prevention tools and COVID-19 vaccines. Mr. Millett also noted that all people in the modern world are interconnected. Therefore, HIV infection and other diseases are in no way limited by national boundaries.
Lois Maturu, a Zimbabwean activist, reminded everyone that young people play a central role in the HIV response. Young people are often marginalized and viewed as end users of services that are not specifically tailored to their lifestyles. It was science that became the reason that Lois had the opportunity to speak to the participants in the session: as a child, Lois Maturu contracted HIV and witnessed the death of her mother and brother from the virus. Young people need to be central to science and be drawn to the tables that prioritize research.
“Make sure young people and adolescents are seen as decision-makers and not just end-users, ” she said. ” We need a progressive approach to ensure that research and science are promoted by communities and provide what everyone needs.”
All participants insisted that HIV programs be based on scientific evidence. Columbia University professor and director of the Center for Infectious Disease Epidemiological Research (CIDER) Wafaa El-Sadr noted that the evidence base comes not only from biomedical laboratories and large clinical trials but also from social sciences. The co-chairs of the forthcoming International Scientific Conference of the AIDS Society in July 2021, Adeeba Kamarulzaman and Hendrik Strick expressed their hope that the high-level meeting will provide an impetus for closer interaction with science. Despite the limitations of COVID-19, Hendrick Strick called for a massive effort to bring together thousands of HIV vaccine scientists in one massive effort, similar to the collaboration around the Large Hadron Collider or even the Manhattan Project. From 8 to 10 June 2021, the UN General Assembly High-Level Meeting on AIDS is being held in New York and online. The meeting will discuss the results of activities to reduce the negative consequences of HIV since the previous similar event, which took place 5 years ago.