snehansu bhaduri
24th November 2007, 04:44
Re:Ray of hope for 5,000 HIV+ people
22 Nov 2007, 0023 hrs IST, Kounteya Sinha,TNN
Dear Friends,
Thanks a lot to Government of India for their ever-greatest upcoming
World AIDS Day's commitment towards protection of ongoing most
neglected treatment issue as a citizen living with HIV in 2nd line
ART for last two years.
Although, "Ray of hope" very confusingly sound any real hope to me
according to the statement by our Union Health Secretary Mr. Naresh
Dayal, "Only those patients, who have been on first-line drugs in
NACO's ART centers and have become resistant, will be eligible for
second-line."
As I never got any sort of 1st line or 2nd line free ART support
from our Government till now, may be for the reason that when I
started my 1st line ART in 2000, there was no provision for free ART
in Government hospitals, again when I started 2nd line ART, then our
Government just started free 1st line ART support.
Although from the very beginning I am under the treatment of
Government
Hospital, which is currently one Government ART Center, but I am
currently
getting my 2nd line ARD from AIDS Healthcare Foundation India, without
any life
long support security.
There are many more friends of mine on 2nd line ART in same position
like me.
May I ask our Honorable Union Health Minister of India Dr. Ramadoss
about upcoming Government commitment for social security of the
citizens like me?
(Although I experienced many times earlier that Ministers/Government
Officials
least bother to give any answer to others or me and may not give any
answer to
this!)
For 2nd line ART roll out from coming January'08 in a controlled
manner will our Government be equipped with Viral Load and Drug
Resistant Test facilities ?
What about critical side effect management ?
How the frequent interruption in supply of 2nd line ART (Which we are
experiencing time to time in various ART Centers in case of 1st line
ART) will be addressed by keeping us in dark in terms of Drug
Procurement ?
Will our generic drug manufacturing companies be ready to negotiate
their profit as Corporate Social Responsibilities with the
Government ?
Will this be really beneficial for us to reject the proposal of
UNITAID ?
I am really very afraid, because still now Rajasthan Network for
People Living With HIV/AIDS (RNP+) has not been withdrawn their
Hunger Strike on upcoming World AIDS Day!
Last NACO newsletter tried to justify their current surprising
sentinel surveillance report as hands on support of successful AIDS
CONTROL in India, but the staffs of ICTC Centers are whispering and
overloading day by day with up going numbers of detection!
In solidarity,
Snehansu Bhaduri.
Coordinator, HIV/AIDS Programme.
Gwalior Children and General Hospital.
Snehansu.bhaduri@gmail.com (Snehansu.bhaduri@gmail.com)
Ray of hope for 5,000 HIV+ people
22 Nov 2007, 0023 hrs IST, Kounteya Sinha,TNN
NEW DELHI: Nearly 5,000 HIV positive patients in India, who were
facing imminent death because they had become resistant to the first-
line Anti-Retroviral Therapy (ART) - the only known treatment that
suppresses the HIV virus - have good news coming their way. For,
India has finally decided to roll out the second-line ART from
January 2008.
The announcement will be made by health minister A Ramadoss on World
Aids Day on December 1.
TOI has learnt that two centres - Mumbai's J J Hospital and Chennai's
Tambaram ART centre - will roll out the treatment from January.
Maulana Azad Medical College (Delhi), PGI (Chandigarh) and ART
centres in Kolkata, Manipur and Nagaland will introduce it by April
2008. Nearly 3,000 patients, who have become resistant to first-line
therapy, will be put on second-line by December 2008.
Ten doctors from these centres are being sent to Thailand to study
operational issues relating to second-line therapy in mid-December..
At present, the National Aids Control Programme only provides free
first-line drugs to over 1.05 lakh HIV patients in its 127 ART
centres. Naco estimates that at least 3% of these patients have
become resistant to first-line drugs, thanks to poor adherence to the
treatment regimen. If not put on second-line immediately, most of
these patients would die within a few years. Health secretary Naresh
Dayal said: "We had planned to introduce second-line treatment only
after one lakh HIV patients were put on first-line drugs. Now that we
have crossed that mark, second-line will be introduced in January in
a controlled manner. Only those patients, who have been on first-line
drugs in Naco's ART centres and have become resistant, will be
eligible for second-line. "
Dayal said UNITAID, an international drug purchasing facility, has
offered to donate the drugs to India for the first two years. Naco
will then tie up with India's generic drug makers to provide them. A
health ministry official said: "Ramadoss is yet to decide whether we
will accept UNITAID's donation or tie up with pharma companies from
the start itself." Under first-line therapy, patients had to consume
two tablets a day. When on second-line, the number will increase to
almost 10 with more side-effects.
kounteya.sinha@
22 Nov 2007, 0023 hrs IST, Kounteya Sinha,TNN
Dear Friends,
Thanks a lot to Government of India for their ever-greatest upcoming
World AIDS Day's commitment towards protection of ongoing most
neglected treatment issue as a citizen living with HIV in 2nd line
ART for last two years.
Although, "Ray of hope" very confusingly sound any real hope to me
according to the statement by our Union Health Secretary Mr. Naresh
Dayal, "Only those patients, who have been on first-line drugs in
NACO's ART centers and have become resistant, will be eligible for
second-line."
As I never got any sort of 1st line or 2nd line free ART support
from our Government till now, may be for the reason that when I
started my 1st line ART in 2000, there was no provision for free ART
in Government hospitals, again when I started 2nd line ART, then our
Government just started free 1st line ART support.
Although from the very beginning I am under the treatment of
Government
Hospital, which is currently one Government ART Center, but I am
currently
getting my 2nd line ARD from AIDS Healthcare Foundation India, without
any life
long support security.
There are many more friends of mine on 2nd line ART in same position
like me.
May I ask our Honorable Union Health Minister of India Dr. Ramadoss
about upcoming Government commitment for social security of the
citizens like me?
(Although I experienced many times earlier that Ministers/Government
Officials
least bother to give any answer to others or me and may not give any
answer to
this!)
For 2nd line ART roll out from coming January'08 in a controlled
manner will our Government be equipped with Viral Load and Drug
Resistant Test facilities ?
What about critical side effect management ?
How the frequent interruption in supply of 2nd line ART (Which we are
experiencing time to time in various ART Centers in case of 1st line
ART) will be addressed by keeping us in dark in terms of Drug
Procurement ?
Will our generic drug manufacturing companies be ready to negotiate
their profit as Corporate Social Responsibilities with the
Government ?
Will this be really beneficial for us to reject the proposal of
UNITAID ?
I am really very afraid, because still now Rajasthan Network for
People Living With HIV/AIDS (RNP+) has not been withdrawn their
Hunger Strike on upcoming World AIDS Day!
Last NACO newsletter tried to justify their current surprising
sentinel surveillance report as hands on support of successful AIDS
CONTROL in India, but the staffs of ICTC Centers are whispering and
overloading day by day with up going numbers of detection!
In solidarity,
Snehansu Bhaduri.
Coordinator, HIV/AIDS Programme.
Gwalior Children and General Hospital.
Snehansu.bhaduri@gmail.com (Snehansu.bhaduri@gmail.com)
Ray of hope for 5,000 HIV+ people
22 Nov 2007, 0023 hrs IST, Kounteya Sinha,TNN
NEW DELHI: Nearly 5,000 HIV positive patients in India, who were
facing imminent death because they had become resistant to the first-
line Anti-Retroviral Therapy (ART) - the only known treatment that
suppresses the HIV virus - have good news coming their way. For,
India has finally decided to roll out the second-line ART from
January 2008.
The announcement will be made by health minister A Ramadoss on World
Aids Day on December 1.
TOI has learnt that two centres - Mumbai's J J Hospital and Chennai's
Tambaram ART centre - will roll out the treatment from January.
Maulana Azad Medical College (Delhi), PGI (Chandigarh) and ART
centres in Kolkata, Manipur and Nagaland will introduce it by April
2008. Nearly 3,000 patients, who have become resistant to first-line
therapy, will be put on second-line by December 2008.
Ten doctors from these centres are being sent to Thailand to study
operational issues relating to second-line therapy in mid-December..
At present, the National Aids Control Programme only provides free
first-line drugs to over 1.05 lakh HIV patients in its 127 ART
centres. Naco estimates that at least 3% of these patients have
become resistant to first-line drugs, thanks to poor adherence to the
treatment regimen. If not put on second-line immediately, most of
these patients would die within a few years. Health secretary Naresh
Dayal said: "We had planned to introduce second-line treatment only
after one lakh HIV patients were put on first-line drugs. Now that we
have crossed that mark, second-line will be introduced in January in
a controlled manner. Only those patients, who have been on first-line
drugs in Naco's ART centres and have become resistant, will be
eligible for second-line. "
Dayal said UNITAID, an international drug purchasing facility, has
offered to donate the drugs to India for the first two years. Naco
will then tie up with India's generic drug makers to provide them. A
health ministry official said: "Ramadoss is yet to decide whether we
will accept UNITAID's donation or tie up with pharma companies from
the start itself." Under first-line therapy, patients had to consume
two tablets a day. When on second-line, the number will increase to
almost 10 with more side-effects.
kounteya.sinha@