When Sadiq Ali heard about a clinical trial for pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) happening in the United Kingdom in 2013, the athletic 26-year old hesitated. He worried about what starting PrEP might say to people about his sexual behavior. The stigma he associated with being on the prevention pill was just too much for him.
“I was ashamed to even be offered this thing, even though I barely knew what it was,” the Londoner says now. “I thought that only highly promiscuous and risky sex practitioners would take this. I went through this process of ‘slut shaming’ myself. I was still very naïve at this point.”
So, Sadiq waited a few more months, had second thoughts, and decided to enroll in the PrEP study after all. Unfortunately, fate had dealt him a crushing blow.
Between the time Sadiq heard about the study and before he actually began taking PrEP, he was infected with HIV. It occurred literally days before he started taking the pill. His first HIV test during the study, in January of 2014, revealed the infection.
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“I thought if I took PrEP it would make me all the things I didn’t think were me. Things that I didn’t want to be,” he says, pointing to the promiscuity about which many gay men taking PrEP are accused. “But instead, not taking it resulted in me contracting HIV.”
Related: Five Sexy Men On PrEP Explain Why They Are Taking The Pill
The irony of Sadiq’s tragic timing forged an advocate who is fighting both HIV stigma and for the adoption of PrEP in the United Kingdom (it is an advocacy issue that was further ignited when the UK National Health Services took action that has delayed the approval of Truvada as PrEP, perhaps for years).
This past year, Sadiq won the title of Mr. Gay Great Britain, and his advocacy platform is something he now understands all too well: HIV stigma among gay men, and why PrEP is such an important new prevention tool.
In his emotional and inspiring video as a contestant for Mr Gay World, Sadiq courageously shared his story of deciding to join the PrEP trial too late, and what the experience has taught him about internalized stigma.
“Something was lifted from my shoulders when I filmed the video,” Sadiq says. “I can now be in a position to educate.”
“I am more motivated than I have ever been and I feel proud,” says Sadiq. “I know that I am doing the right thing. I want to tell people that there is a way to protect yourself, and there is no need to judge yourself for that. To take your status into your own hands is something empowering.”
Winning the pageant was always beside the point, Sadiq believes.
“Of course,” he says, “I have already won.”
(Photo credit: Josh Auke. Videos produced by Nuno Lopes.)
bystander
Damn, he’s gorgeous.
davegun2
Yes yes YES. Intelligent conversation. Thank you for going forward with a positive discussion on PrEp. I have been HIV since 1986, probably contracted around 1979. So avoid HIV by using PrEp and other smart decisions. But don’t worry about your future. Here I am at 70 years old. I am happy, successful in life. And I even have a boyfriend who is 39.
Google me for info about my novels and life.
The world is open to all of us in the G community especially if you take PrEp.
Dave Lara
Billy Budd
He had bareback sex and got HIV. It is his fault. It was not caused by the lack of medication. It was caused by IRRESPONSIBILITY on his part. PrEp is stupid, it is a dangerous drug, it is not really proven to work (The conclusions are based on simulations and not on hard data), and all you have to do in order to stay clean is to WEAR A CONDOM, for christ sakes!
davegun2
And Billy Budd you are a putz
tham
@Billy Budd:
I have the exact opposite view. Anything we can do to stop the spread of HIV. PrEP is a valuable tool and its insanity that not all sexually active gay men not be on it.
Shaming people who are on it is…insanity.
EdWoody
He couldn’t have just used a condom? Would have avoided all these problems. I don’t agree with Billy Budd that Prep is stupid – I think it’s a useful tool. But I do agree that it wouldn’t be necessary if guys just looked after themselves in the first place.
GC1985
I don’t think shaming anyone is right, but he should have used a condom and stop messing around with so many guys. Sure it only takes one time, but he could have avoided it if he only knew his partner(s) and maybe reduced the amount of partners he has had.
@tham:
No. I don’t think so. I think we need to practice safer sex, and if PreP is something someone should decide on that is fine. But to tell that everyone should be on it is perhaps a bit reckless itself.
Want to know why? PrEP isn’t 100%, and there are more and more cases of liver damage and pancreatitis.
http://www.drugs.com/sfx/truvada-side-effects.html
It’s not a 100% wonder drug with zero side effects. In fact some side effects are extremely serious.
This poor guy had a $12,000 medical bill because of PrEP:
http://angryhomosexual.com/truvada-prep-side-effect-disaster/
charlie_jackpot
When did it become Mr Gay Great Britain? Mr Gay UK has a much better ring to it. Do Northern Ireland have their own contest?
GC1985
One needs to weigh the pros and cons of using PrEP, but also consider that it isn’t 100% and could damage your liver in the long term. Perhaps adjusting ones own sexual habits is more suitable to prevent HIV?
davegun2
That claim about liver damage is bogus. The cases of that are so rare as to be non existent. As far as taking care by using condoms, of course, but do both. And boom, you have almost achieved 100% safety.
I have been on anti virals for 18 years. The early ones did do damage to me physically. But these newer drugs do nothing that affects your wellness. Trust the medical community on this one.
Take PrEp, use condoms and use good judgement on the number of people you have sex with. Do not shame. Please don’t do that.
GC1985
They are not bogus. There are more and more cases of that happening. Almost achieved 100% safety? That’s a dangerous myth that ignores that there are other STIs out there.
“But these newer drugs do nothing that affects your wellness. Trust the medical community on this one.”
Except the medical community isn’t even in real agreement on PrEP.
davegun2
Ok. I give up. Just trying to educate you. I come from a time and place where everyone died. I come from a place where I have taken the drugs, both the bad and now the good ones. And I am here to tell you that most and I mean most of you will suffer no ill effects from taking anti-virals.
But go on. Keep up your crazy theories about the medical profession trying to harm you and there is no life other than ( insert whatever you think will protect your from getting IT ). You’re going to miss out on potential from people and places and life if you live in constant fear.
It’s just a virus. One that does not cause death anymore. And the virus is not a judgement against what kind of person you are.
AtticusBennett
i don’t know a single doctor who treats gay males who thinks we should NOT be on PrEP.
i’ve been a condom user. i’d love to be on PrEP. believe it or not, folks, sex with condoms shouldn’t be a mandatory thing for gay men for their entire lives. we have a drug now that can eliminate the transmissions of HIV and it’s frankly staggering that people are so determined to insist that “just use condoms forever” should be the solution to every gay man’s sex life.
1898
“But instead, not taking it resulted in me contracting HIV.”
This statement makes no sense. Not taking Truvada is not what caused him to contract HIV. Having unprotected sex with an infected partner is what caused him to contract HIV. Could he have possibly prevented infection if he had been taking Truvada? Yes, possibly. But that’s also true of using condoms or engaging in different sexual activities that pose less risk of infection.
If “not taking it” resulted in people contracting HIV, then everyone not on Truvada would have HIV.
I also don’t understand his mindset that taking Truvada would somehow make him feel bad about himself, and that not taking it was a result of him slut-shaming himself. But he was having bareback sex anyway, and he wasn’t slut-shaming himself about THAT? It just doesn’t make any sense.
As far as the drug itself is concerned, it’s a great additional option for a lot of people but it’s not right for everybody. People who have preexisting liver problems are advised not to take it (and many other drugs) because of the potential for increased liver problems or even liver failure. And we’re not just talking about old alcoholics who’ve fried their own livers; we’re talking about thousands of young people (I’m one of them) who have liver problems that are not related to any kind of reckless behavior. There’s also the issue of many people not being able to afford it, due to lack of insurance or their insurance not covering it, and/or not being able to afford the regular checkups and lab work that go along with it.
Shaming people who are on Truvada is disgusting and should stop, but can we also stop shaming the people who aren’t able to be on it?
Stache
@davegun2: Welcome to the board Dave. We have our resident slut shamers here for sure. I’ve just given up and let them have their soapbox moments. They need you to know that they’re always right no matter what your experience or current medical statistics have to say.
I don’t do PreP myself but it’s a known fact that’s it’s safer then condoms alone. 99% vs 96% with condoms. Condoms won’t won’t protect you from those other Std’s either. The answer is just regular check ups which most PReP users are doing anyways.
JerseyMike
@davegun2: @AtticusBennett: Thank you both!! I don’t understand the resistance to taking all precautions when having sex.. PREP, condoms, etc.. Calling someone a slut because they want to use PREP is truly ignorant. To me PREP is the next step to eliminating this disease. No its not a cure but it’s the next best thing until there is one. There is a lot of growing up and rethinking that needs to be done around here.
GC1985
@AtticusBennett: So you’re basically saying PreP is simply a way to have a ton of bareback sex? That’s great. I often agree with you, but in this matter… no. I don’t think I can.
What we need a serious reality check and attitude change in this community, but that will never happen. So I’ve pretty much given up even trying to convince anyone.
@davegun2: Medical profession? Doctors didn’t come up with PreP. Big Pharm did. The studies into the safety of PreP is grossly inadequate and understudied. And do you trust big pharmaceutical companies to have your best interest at heart? I think they are in it for the money.
GC1985
@Stache: PreP isn’t 99%.
Stache
@GC1985:
For people who take 7 PrEP pills per week, their estimated level of protection is 99%.
For people who take 4 PrEP pills per week, their estimated level of protection is 96%.
For people who take 2 PrEP pills per week, their estimated level of protection is 76%.
http://men.prepfacts.org/the-basics/
Brian
The logic of Mr Gay Great Britain appears to be hysterically warped. Is he really suggesting that not taking PrEP resulted in him contracting HIV???? Puh-lease.
Just goes to show that logical thinking is not a pre-requisite for winning a beauty contest.
Paco
@1898: No one takes responsibility for their own high risk behaviors anymore. The fault is always elsewhere because they were just having sex and it isn’t their job to protect their health when they are fully aware what is lurking out there.
Refusing to use other methods of prevention, while not taking Truvada and engaging in known high risk sexual activities, is what made him poz.
Beachman
This guy is a moron….I don’t pay attention to morons.
Tackle
I do agree somewhat with what @Billy Budd is saying. He comes off as being a paid mouth piece for Pharmaceutical companies, to try and SCARE gay and bisexual men into taking PrEP… And not taking the medication had nothing to do with him contraction HIV. Why don’t he admit to his own reckless or promiscuous behavior. And if a condom broke, then just say it. But don’t blame the lack of medication…
QJ201
“I thought that only highly promiscuous and risky sex practitioners would take this”
So he slut shames guys on PreP, but then he obviously was having bareback sex.
ugh, just ugh.
Juanjo
Thanks to all those of you out there who decided to do some slut shaming. I do hope to the Buddha you never make an error in judgment in your life which results to tragic consequences. Of course the rest of us who actually know that people are capable of errors and mistakes in judgment are not so judgmental.
As for the person going on about the medicines damaging the liver, if you actually read the research you would have some actual information on the subject. Most cases of liver damage where specific HIV medications play a factor, occur in people over 50 and who have had hepatitis or some other disease or injury to the liver. It is also more common among people with a history of alcohol abuse.
Tackle
@Juanjo: Actually no one can “slut shame” anyone, anymore than someone can shame someone based on race, gender, age, sexual orientation, or sexual activity… No one can MAKE anyone feel inferior without that person’s consent. So if a person has no shame, they would feel no shame, and cannot be “slut shamed”…
Me2
HIV transmission is not limited to the promiscuous and condom’s aren’t 100% safe. PrEP may not be your personal preference but it is a viable option that people should be allowed to consider without being made to feel bad. Sadiq sounds like he wishes that he could’ve had that luxury.
Poncho Sanchez
I once heard it said that when straights forgo condoms, they get baby showers, but when gays forgo condoms, they get funerals.
Sorry, I’m getting to the point in my life where I don’t think condoms are a realistic 100% of the time, condoms aren’t the real world. I have been strictly oral for the last 10 years, but I’m getting really bored with it. Yes, I’m looking into PREP.
1898
@Poncho Sanchez: “I once heard it said that when straights forgo condoms, they get baby showers, but when gays forgo condoms, they get funerals”
Holy ’80s flashback, Batman! HIV stopped being a death sentence 25+ years ago. A statement like that might’ve been true in the ’80s but now it’s just a sad reminder of a dark period in gay history.
If condoms aren’t an option for you, Truvada might be exactly what you need. But condoms are still an easy, cheap, effective, safe option for most people, and they protect against a lot of other diseases that Truvada offers no protection from.
Poncho Sanchez
@1898: Honestly, I can’t imagine having penetrative sex with a condom. Imagine getting a blow job and having to wear a condom. There’s just really no point to it. I rather wank it.
odawg
@Billy Budd: Here you go again making ridiculous and ignorant comments. Clearly, you have some serious issues.
GC1985
@Stache: Brought to you by BIG PHARM!
GC1985
@Poncho Sanchez: How about some anal cancer then?
http://betablog.org/anal-cancer-hpv-gay-men-need-know/
Does PreP protect against that?
So yeah… go have without a condom. Here we go with “the feeling without a condom is unmatched” nonsense.
http://www.cancer.org/healthy/findcancerearly/menshealth/cancer-facts-for-gay-and-bisexual-men
“You can help reduce your risk of anal cancer by not having many sex partners and using condoms.”
Condoms suck though… because barebacking on PReP is the future. Right?
GC1985
@1898: “But condoms are still an easy, cheap, effective, safe option for most people, and they protect against a lot of other diseases that Truvada offers no protection from.”
Like HPV and anal cancer. Condoms are not 100%, but they offer great protection against HPV, which PReP offers absolutely no protection against. And cases of anal cancer are exploding among gay men.
Brian
You shouldn’t be putting synthetic drugs in your body, period. Flush PrEP down the toilet.
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Merv
Gay men who have anal sex should use condoms and PrEP. Unfortunately, people will use PrEP as an excuse to bareback. We’ve already had an Einstein above idealize barebacking as something to aspire to. Barebacking will never in our lifetimes be responsible behavior. Even if PrEP were 100% effective in preventing HIV transmission, there are other existing STDs, and new diseases will evolve given the opportunity.
ingyaom
It seems that a lot of guys have the mistaken idea that PrEP is A “bareback pill”, but the high numbers you see, like “99% effective” are based on taking a drug every day and using condoms, i.e. NOT BAREBACKING. Still interested in getting a prescription?
David Aventura
@QJ201: Thank you for bringing this up. And now, we are expected to not slut shame this guy even though he did the same to guys on Prep? Some gay men will come up with ANY EXCUSE to explain why they contracted HIV. How about irresponsibility? If more gay men owned it, others would listen more closely and avoid those same pitfalls. Alas, gay men and irresponsibility seem to go hand-in-hand.
Daniel-Reader
There are different strains of HIV (types, groups, and subtypes), so don’t be thinking medicine works to combat them all equally. As a virus, it mutates by nature. Prep is for the most common strains and no substitute for condoms, lube, and taking your time without doing party drugs and alcohol that impair your better judgement. So be safe and be educated.
http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/basics/prep.html
JerseyMike
PREP does not equal bareback. Those who think so are going to bareback without it. I believe in protecting myself any way possible. Prep being one of them. There are to many other things out there that Prep does not protect you from. Gonorrhea has a new strain that does not work with antibiotics. PROTECT YOURSELF!!
Stache
@GC1985: Only one person in the last 12 years PreP has been available has turned positive. Many thousands of uses. It’s extremely rare to happen and should be no concern to anyone.
1898
@Poncho Sanchez: “I can’t imagine having penetrative sex with a condom.”
Sounds like a personal issue. I’ve had a lot of sex with condoms, topping and bottoming, and it was always great.
Stache
@1898: I actually have something of a fetish for condoms. Bareback is great fantasy but in real life prefer condoms and not just for safety.
Creamsicle
Everyone in the gay community and beyond has the same goals when it comes to new HIV infections, and that’s the see new infections reduced to zero. PrEP is a new tool in that fight, and if made widely and cheaply available, could help us to stop the spread of HIV and hopefully one day eradicate the virus. Since cures for HIV seem like such a far off prospect, containment of new infections but using every tool available might be the best bet we have to finally stop new infections from occurring.
AtticusBennett
” So you’re basically saying PreP is simply a way to have a ton of bareback sex? ”
No. it’s a way to have protected sex without a condom. I’ve had this very-same argument too many times; people saying “oh, so it’s a pill to have unprotected sex!” uh….PrEP is protection. It’s still Protected Sex, just with a pill, not a condom.
I don’t believe that we gay men should have to use condoms forever to protect against HIV. HIV isn’t a “punishment” for having pleasurable sex, fellas.
studies have shown that the cities where more people who are on PrEP, fewer HIV transmissions are occurring.
being on PrEP doesn’t mean “i have tonnes of bareback sex with random partners all the time!!!!”. at all.
the birth control pill exists so women can keep from getting pregnant while still enjoying the pleasures of intimacy without a condom.
this is actually no different.
Paco
@JerseyMike: No one will care about the antibiotic resistant Gonorrhea until their penis is permanently on fire.
Chris
Like all of us, Mr. Gay GB is inconsistent in what he does and he doesn’t always choose his words with the greatest of care. But to focus on a couple of written phrases and to analyze them to death means that people have lost his larger message: PrEP was available and he did not use not; as a result, he was unprotected. YES, he might not have used a condom (or maybe it broke). That is not his point. The point is: there are tools out there to help prevent HIV. Don’t let shame stop you from using them.
Oh yes, everyone who uses PrEP should know what it doesn’t protect against; and they should take appropriate steps.
But really, weigh the pros and cons and then make your own choice.
GC1985
@Stache: I am not buying big pharm funded studies. Asides from that prep does nothing against HPV or other viruses.
@AtticusBennett: Uh no. It is unprotected sex still. You are given zero protection against HPV, anal cancer and other infections. There is no such thing as unprotected safe sex. All studies regarding PReP had condom usage as a included component.
stanhope
@tham: haters are going to hate. The fellow’s judgment was flawed and the outcome proves it. I am glad he is now a spokesperson for PReP now but the fact remains, he made a choice since he didn’t get it from a toilet seat.
Paco
https://www.poz.com/article/positive-prep
Kangol
@davegun2: People ARE still dying of HIV-related infections. Things have improved dramatically since the 1980s and 1990s, but you are also misleading people into thinking that HIV and HIV-related diseases are not a problem.
I salute you for your health and the other suggestions you have about using PrEP and condoms in tandem. What’s particularly tragic is that this 26-year-old man seemed NOT to realize that he could contract HIV by having sex either without a condom or by not being on PrEP. The article strangely appears to elide this basic fact, and it’s the people continue to seroconvert.
Also, PrEP does not protect against other STIs or Hep C for that matter. This is another issue to consider when engaging in raw sex. But condoms and PrEP are far better in preventing HIV seroconversion than nothing that all, and a 26 year old, a 16 year old, a 56 year old, and everyone should have this knowledge by now.
GET TESTED. DO NOT ASSUME THAT THE WAY A PERSON LOOKS CORRELATES TO THEIR HIV STATUS. USE A CONDOM AND/OR PrEP. AND URGE EVERYONE YOU KNOW TO GET TESTED AND CONTINUE GETTING TESTED!
onthemark
@1898: Yeah, I didn’t get that part either. What “stigma”? The general public wouldn’t have known he was taking it. Nobody would have known he was taking PrEP except his sex partners, or offered-to sex partners (assuming any of them said no… oh what am I saying, like anyone would have told him no… ha ha ha ha ha ha ha).
So – in order to avoid the imaginary “stigma,” he ends up getting HIV anyway and now EVERYBODY knows! Great work.
@GC1985: “So I’ve pretty much given up even trying to convince anyone.”
Great! The fireworks party starts at 9 pm! Let’s make popcorn and get the grill going!
AtticusBennett
@GC1985: some of us have had the HPV vaccine. and in serodiscordant relationships, where the positive partner maintains an undetectable viral load with truvada, and the negative partner takes daily Truvada as PrEP….what’s the issue?
even condoms don’t effectively protect against HPV.
GC1985
@AtticusBennett: Except anal cancer still occurs and anyone who is negative in a relationship with someone who is positive (regardless of their claim of an undetectable viral load) is asking for trouble.
Condoms are a great deterrence against HPV. They offer protection (look at my source I gave you). Bareback sex isn’t “protected with PrEP”. All studies that show effectiveness are done with condoms being part of the equation. If you choose to have bareback sex and take PrEP you greatly lower its effectiveness, leading you to be vulnerable to infection.
GC1985
All studies on PrEP being effective where based on the factor of condom usage being used with PrEP. Even the manufacturer of the drug urge usage of condom with PrEP. All the studies were done with condom usage. It isn’t a bareback pill and there is no such thing as “protected bareback sex”.
onthemark
@GC1985: “anyone who is negative in a relationship with someone who is positive (regardless of their claim of an undetectable viral load) is asking for trouble.”
How nice of you – you make such a big fuss about being relationship-minded, but when other people get into relationships and conscientiously work to avoid STDs, you not only pompously tell them they’re doing it wrong, but that they shouldn’t bother being in the relationship at all?
(Personally I agree with you about condoms re: PrEP, but how did you miss the part where Atticus pointed out there’s a VACCINE for HPV?)
It’s very noticeable that anytime you write about relationships, you never have anything good to say. Nothing about romance and such. No, for you it’s all about avoiding STDs.
It literally seems like the only reason YOU are in a relationship is to avoid STDs!
GC1985
I’m not telling them to do anything. I’m telling what I think and that is what I think alone. I would never date a HIV+ person because of concern for my own safety. I know you must have the last word on everything (that’s part of your personality). I have no interest in discussing a damn thing with you.
Have a nice day.
GC1985
And anal cancer rates are exploding among gay men. This is a fact. Vaccine? I think not.
onthemark
@GC1985: “I’m not telling them to do anything.” Yes you are, you just did, and hypocritically. And stop with that “last word” stuff; you only resort to that line when you realize you’re wrong.
I know several sero-discordant couples who’ve had no trouble staying sero-discordant for years and even decades. I don’t know all their sex histories but some say they still use condoms for anal sex (again I agree with you about condoms). Or maybe they’re prudes like you, and they just cuddle – lol.
Several posts back you said: “So I’ve pretty much given up even trying to convince anyone.” Promises, promises! They’re not paying attention to you, Pope Giancarlo, so why not just give up.
1898
@onthemark: “but how did you miss the part where Atticus pointed out there’s a VACCINE for HPV?”
Not everyone can get the HPV vaccine. I’m only in my early 30s but was told I was too old for the vaccine and that my insurance wouldn’t pay for it, and that I couldn’t even pay for it out of pocket because it’s only FDA approved for males under the age of 26.
onthemark
@GC1985: “Vaccine? I think not.”
Well, the vaccine EXISTS and is quite common by now. (However much you think or don’t think about it.) No doubt this upsets your prudish sense of justice. You desperately want all those SLUTS out there to SUFFER and DIE so you can feel superior!
Sorry to disappoint you. But the vaccine exists and is quite common.
onthemark
@1898: I’m aware of that but thanks for mentioning that for anyone not aware. (Also of course, a vaccine would be irrelevant for anyone who’s already been exposed.)
GC1985
@onthemark: Of course he demands the last word on everything and in his eyes he is always right. He’s never wrong (it’s the egotistical personality).
Right. Keep believing that. You are incapable of letting anything go (again because of your personality and simply who you are).
I’m no prude. I already went over this. I’m not even a virgin. But I use condoms.
You’re full of shit when you try to talk for me. Keep it to yourself.
GC1985
I can’t believe this putz still tries to talk for me and says I’m a prude. That line is boring and old. Go take it elsewhere please. You recycle the same trash every few weeks. We get it already.
Who said anything about suffering, Donald… I mean Offthemark? Say… are you voting for Trump in November? You’re about as much of a lying screwball as him.
GC1985
PS… he still can’t address the exploding rates of anal cancer in the gay community. Typical liar.
ShaunNJ
@Billy Budd: You are not aware how Mr.Sadiq was infected. Perhaps a broken condom, perhaps oral sex. I was with a long term partner who was HIV+ while I was not. We practiced safe sex – mostly mutual masturbation. On one occasion of doing so – he ejaculated directly into my eye. I was not infected but could have been as it is a point of transmission. I’m sure Mr. Sadiq regrets whatever happened and does not need to be shamed for his situation.
onthemark
@GC1985: The vaccine has been commonly used for less than ten years, so anyone who had an active sex life earlier than that (which includes even you, hypocrite) may have been at risk.
Are you aware that penetration doesn’t need to occur for HPV transmission to occur? It can be transmitted by *frottage* in certain places. So yes, that means theoretically even you – with your cuddly vanilla sex life – might have gotten it. Ironic, huh? 🙂
onthemark
@GC1985: I already agreed with you about condoms – TWICE. Now three times. WTF more do you want.
But as other posters told you above, condoms aren’t 100% effective against that either. AND YOU DIDN’T ADDRESS THEIR COMMENTS about it. You just completely ignored it. And now you want to pretend there isn’t even a vaccine that’s totally appropriate for younger people.
Btw – have YOU been tested for HPV? Based on the dangerous misinformation you’re spreading here, it wouldn’t be that much of an irony if you were exposed to it yourself. 🙂
onthemark
@GC1985: Also – you know I agree with you on political matters. That’s a lame “argument” you trot out when you completely run out of anything intelligent or even pertinent to say about the subject at hand. That’s part of your personality.
(Oh right, unless you’re still a drug warrior who’s horrified about marijuana? You might as well be a Republican on that subject!)
onthemark
According to GMHC – “Anal HPV is present in approximately 65% of HIV negative MSM.” That’s the NEGATIVE men! They are the population who often have never even heard of it, generally don’t know they’ve been exposed to it or what the signs are. (This population may even include GC1985 himself.)
And – thanks to dangerous misinformation spread by hypocrites like GC1985 – the younger ones don’t even know about the vaccine.
“…and 95% of HIV positive MSM.” But that’s the population who more often gets tested for it, and treated early if necessary.
@GC1985: So, GC, I just “addressed” the rates as you requested. Happy now? Or are you pissed off because it doesn’t fit your puritanical world view? 🙂
GC1985
Four posts and he says absolutely nothing at all. Does this guy recycle the same material from weeks ago? There wouldn’t be an issue and I would say “fine, that’s cool” if you didn’t make idiotic assumptions about my personal life.
By the way, what misinformation? I know there is a vaccine. But the vaccine isn’t always effective.
@onthemark: You have some serious emotional problems. And you are now making things up about what I said because you are too ignorant and stupid to come up with an original point.
GC1985
@onthemark: This guy is a total screwball. Of course I have been tested for it. I care about my health. And what vanilla sex life? Just because I am not into fisting doesn’t mean my sex life is vanilla.
Both my partner and I have been tested. And we don’t have it.
Saying it may include me shows how much of a delusional misinformed idiot you really are. I had the vaccine five years ago in my 20s.
Next time ask before you go off the rails about my personal life, which you don’t know sh*t about.
GC1985
@onthemark: You don’t agree with me on anything. You have stated you are a fiscal conservative. I am not one. Or are you a libertarian now?
Oh as far as marijuana, don’t care for it. If someone wants to smoke, fine. Just don’t force others to breath it. Smells awful anyways.
Now cocaine and heroin are two different matters.
You can go ahead and have the last word. I don’t really have anything further to add.
GC1985
Oops. I forgot a link.
http://www.m.webmd.com/sexual-conditions/news/20070509/hpv-vaccine-good-news-bad-news?page=2
HPV vaccine is good, if you are of age. The bad news is it isn’t always effective considering what strain of HPV we are talking about. At least for heterosexuals, in certain strains it is only 20% effective. I will look into it further.
onthemark
@GC1985: “You have stated you are a fiscal conservative.” I NEVER SAID THAT. I am not that. You can’t provide a cite because I never said that. As I’ve speculated before, you seem to be confusing me with another poster.
“Oh as far as marijuana, don’t care for it. If someone wants to smoke, fine.” Well I’m very glad you have CHANGED your view on that, since you USED to be dead-set against legalization. (You realize, again, that anyone can look up the cites where you said so? Remember Sempra, GC… Sempra! You were so freaked out. Ha ha ha.) Anyway, I think it’s great that you have come to your senses and CHANGED your view on that subject. Better late than never.
You wanted me to address your points, while accusing me of “always needing the last word” etc. Well I can’t avoid one without doing the other.
So I addressed your points. I’m glad you got tested for HPV and got the vaccine. “HPV vaccine is good, if you are of age.” So we agree!
GC1985
@onthemark: I don’t work for Sempra anymore. And they screwed up royally weeks after I left with that Porter Ranch gas leak. Shameful. The company put profits over people. I will never work for them again.
You are still a screwball and your attitude is disgusting. Just drop it with that nonsense. It is old and tired.
Realityis
@1898: Your comment is perfect. Thank you. To the 70 year old man who is dating a 39 year old, Great and I am happy for you.
I wasn’t so lucky on the meds. They have misshapen my body and made me look years older than I am. I see people staring at me and that’s a big reason I left NYC.
Why can’t we collectively get them to find or bring out the cure? I am so sick and tired of hearing about PrEP and Lipodystopy and Facial Injections, etc. etc. etc.
And it’s always the same old people commenting on these articles.
Newsflash: If you are bashing on someone else who is bashing, then you are no better than that person.
christ897
This is a testimony this year 2016. on the 2nd of this month i saw a post that Dr Ebo cure his diabetes and i contacted Ebo. if you have Diabetes, Hiv Virus, Herpes Virus. contact Dr Ebo and i promise the world will be free from disease. Contact his whatsapp plus 2348056398964
christ897
This is a testimony this year 2016. on the 2nd of this month i saw a post that Dr Ebo cure his diabetes and i contacted Ebo. if you have Diabetes, Hiv Virus, Herpes Virus. contact Dr Ebo and i promise the world will be free from disease. Contact his email: dr.lisaebocurecenter @ gmail com or whatsapp plus 2348056398964
Prof Hilary
None of you slut-shamers seem to actually know the guy, so how could you possibly pass on your judgement so easily? Are you all-knowing?
A condom breaking (with his knowledge) was not the only possible scenario of HIV transmission other than having lots of condomless sex with strangers – it could’ve been sex with a long-time partner who cheated on him, it could’ve been someone who raped/drugged him, it could’ve been simply one of those cases of condom failure (it happens more often than it does to PrEP, btw). Needless to say, ever if he was having bareback orgies every night, so what? If he was robbed on the street, do you say it’s his “fault” for going out? If not, why are you looking for “faults” when there isn’t any? He didn’t even blame it on anyone else – he quite clearly stated that it was his own mindset (perhaps influenced by people like you, but he didn’t call you out either) that had led him to his seroconvertion.
Also LOL at someone mentioning anal cancer whilst dismissing the evidence for PrEP. HPV leading to anal cancer from anal sex is *literally* just a theoretical risk, while the effectiveness of PrEP, and indeed PEP, is recorded with hard evidence. There’s a reason why multiple governments have started funding it – it’s not homeopathy. Not to mention there’s actually a vaccine for HPV so it’s not like condom is the more desirable option to protect against the off chance that you might get anal cancer.
Oh, and PrEP’s statistics only from big pharma companies? Guess what? Almost all evidence for all medication was either straight from them, or funded by them. So I suppose you don’t go to the doctor ever?