HIV treatment supports the health of people living with HIV, and there have been great improvements to the treatments available in recent years. If you test positive for HIV, the sooner you access treatment the better.
Antiretroviral therapy
HIV treatment involves taking medication as pills or injections called Antiretroviral therapy (ART). For many people, treatment simply involves a combination of drugs taken as one daily pill or an injection every two months.
ART works by reducing the viral load of HIV in a person's body. Most people using ART can reach an undetectable viral load of HIV in their blood, which has positive health benefits and can prevent onwards transmission of HIV.
For a person living with HIV using regular treatment, their body and immune system is much less likely to be impacted by the virus, so their overall health, wellbeing and longevity will be maintained. People living with HIV who do not use treatment will (over many years) experience impacts on their health, particularly their immune system.
It’s important to use ART correctly as prescribed by your doctor. Stopping the medication or taking it incorrectly means your body is not protected against the virus and it will build up in your body over time, causing negative impacts to your immune system and overall health. It can also cause your body to become resistant to the medication and you may require more complex or different treatments in future.
Treatment as prevention
Using HIV treatment as prescribed also helps to prevent the transmission of HIV.
Once a person’s viral load has become undetectable, HIV can no longer be transmitted through unprotected sex. This means that being undetectable protects the sexual partners of people living with HIV from contracting the virus. This is known as undetectable = untransmissible (U=U) and is supported by major health and scientific bodies.
Getting treatment
If you test positive for HIV, your practitioner will provide more information about finding an s100 prescriber (a doctor who has expertise in HIV management) and you can contact our HIV Support team for any connection, peer support and advocacy you require. Decisions about starting treatment and what treatments to take should always be done in consultation with a doctor with expertise in HIV management.
If you are living with HIV and are eligible for Medicare, treatment is available through the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) and you may be able to access some treatment at no cost. Please contact Canberra Sexual Health Centre to discuss your treatment options.
If you are living with HIV and are not eligible for Medicare, there may be specific programs that can help you access treatment while living in Australia. Please contact Canberra Sexual Health Centre to discuss your treatment options.