The Lancet Series Launch - HIV in People Who Use Drugs
The Lancet has commissioned a series on the global HIV epidemic among people who use drugs. The series consists of seven original state-of-the-art reviews and a number of invited commentaries, and was successfully launched at the International AIDS Conference in Vienna in July 2010. Following the principle "nothing about us without us", each paper features the voices of people who use drugs, including community participants and leaders from China, Ukraine and the USA. Invited commentaries include the Vienna Declaration and a call to decriminalize people who use drugs, as well as remarks from high-profile authors (including Mexican state officials) and a case study of policy changes in Portugal.
This project will bring together the authors of the series in a symposium in Kuala Lumpur for a regional Asian launch. The objective is to disseminate the information presented in the series; to discuss HIV prevention, treatment and care for people who use drugs; and to call for national and regional action for a comprehensive response, including a review of existing drug policies that impede an effective response to HIV among people who use drugs.