Village Voice Queer Issue

[mecch]

Been reading the Village Voice Queer Issue.

First - why do I have to be such a stickler for details?  

There is a moving article called:
"AIDS Killed My Partner—But It Was His Decision To Die"
http://www.villagevoice.com/2010-06-22/news/aids-killed-my-partner-151-but-it-was-his-decision-to-die/

Its a testimony about a man who helped his partner through 9 years of grueling illness. Its mostly the theme of the right to assisted suicide.

His partner seroconverted in "late 1992".

"From the beginning, he was what is known as a “rapid progressor.” He didn’t respond to the new drug cocktails, AZT, nutritional supplements, or anything else."

Then the moving and horrible story of their experience.  The partner died in 2001.

I read the article with vested interest, having experienced a similar but much more rapid experience in the late 1980's, when there were not great drugs available and my friend rapidly declined and then committed suicide, within less than a year of diagnosis (diagnosed a the AIDS stage, however).

But reading this article I was wondering why tritherapy couldn't help this man in the late 90's?

So I wrote a comment:

"Its a moving article. However, missing are more precise dates and treatment information that would tell the story in the context of the times. Tom seroconverted in 1992 and died in 2001. 1995/1996 marks the development of HAART. No mention of HAART in this article, if Tom was on it, or not, and why or why not. Saying he didn't respond to the "drug cocktails" and with no dates. Surely by the late 90's there were tritherapies available to help. This comment is just a reminder that in 2010 a reader should not take Tom's story and apply it to general experience of living with HIV in recent years."

The author graciously responded:

"Thanks for the comments. To "meech": In the space allotted for the article, I couldn't go into much detail about Tom's drug regimen. I mentioned in passing that none of the anti-retroviral "cocktails" then coming onto market were working with him. You're certainly right about one thing: If he had seroconverted only a few years later, he probably would be alive today. That said, it's also worth remembering that people are still dying of AIDS, gay and straight, in America and (especially) abroad."


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I guess I am overly invested in the value of tritherapy.  I know some people who were fading in the 90's and arrived at tritherapy in pretty bad condition.  And they made it and are alive today.   I was just figuring, this guy had a good 5 years in which HAART was around, be that as it may first generation not so great HAART.

I guess I have to make do with its none of my business, but I wonder about these things.  I thought it was  kind of sensational headline ""AIDS Killed My Partner—But It Was His Decision To Die" for 2010, and a bit cavalier to just say "He didn’t respond to the new drug cocktails, AZT, nutritional supplements, or anything else."

It reminds me of that AIDS in Washington DC documentary we discussed. Where in the preview, the ladies are watching a poor wasted soul being carried away to die of AIDS (nowadays) and say "the drugs just werent working for him".

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And on a fun note,

The boys from Jersey Shore are on the cover.  The Voice thought they were playing a clever trick on them, because they didn't tell them the photo shoot was for the Queer Issue.  They thought they would provoke them into some vulgar remarks.

Ha ha ha, jokes on them. They responded so far with very cool, "who gives a shit what issue it is" and "we love our gay fans" and "we look great in the photo, that's all that matters!"  

http://blogs.villagevoice.com/runninscared/archives/2010/06/jersey_shore_re.php



and slide show here:

http://www.villagevoice.com/slideshow/the-boys-of-mtvs-jersey-shore-30166319/

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Finally there's a story on Guidos on the downlow.  Pretty interesting.

[mecch]

Ah OK, i think I found the cover to post:

[Miss Philicia]

He probably didn't respond to HAART because by that time he'd developed resistance to NRTI and NNRTI class meds because of mono and/or dual therapy use.  This has been discussed plenty here.  HAART then obviously helped him hang on until 2001 but no longer.  I was almost in that same boat myself.

Not saying that is what happened, but that's what happened to plenty of people.  1996 was only magical if you began treatment that year as a naive patient.

[Matty the Damned]

Not saying that is what happened, but that's what happened to plenty of people.  1996 was only magical if you began treatment that year as a naive patient.

Indeedy.

MtD

[mecch]

Ah Ok, thanks for that clarification cause it was really bewildering me!

[Miss Philicia]

I'll also add, and this happened to me, that even after HAART arrived, many people that went on the first version of saquinavir developed PI resistance issues.  That first version was badly absorbed so there was never enough of it in your bloodstream, and caused the drug maker to release another version the next year (Fortovase) that was boosted with Norvir, which is also why you see PIs boosted now.

So I was screwed with all PIs until Prezista came out.  The only reason that I didn't croak like others did is because for some reason PI's after that for me "half worked" meaning it would get my viral load to ~25-40,000 and stay stable there, never exploding to larger numbers, and that stable zone allowed my cd4s to increase and not decrease. At one time they even put me on a regimen that had both Kaletra and saquinvair in it, so with the Norvir booster that was 3 PI's.  Amazingly my lipid panel was only slightly elevated.

But I'm not a great example because from what I've read only a small number of people were like that, most had a viral load that kept shooting up and forcing their cd4s ever downward.  In a nutshell that's why it took 18 years (from est. infection year until I reached viral suppression) to get my treatment optimal.  I've now been undetectable for exactly four years, almost to the month -- celebrate with me, won't you (but imagine what that did to my body)?

[mecch]

I see where I have been quite mistaken.  See I thought early tritherapy usually worked, or "half-worked" for anyone with resistance.  Rather than the "half-work" being the exception, as in your case, I thought it was kind of the rule. 

[mecch]

 In a nutshell that's why it took 18 years (from est. infection year until I reached viral suppression) to get my treatment optimal.  I've now been undetectable for exactly four years, almost to the month -- celebrate with me, won't you (but imagine what that did to my body)?

Amazing tenacity.

[Ann]

Can you say clueless? I thought you could.

[Jody]

Philly, mecch, others...thanks for your post about treatments, I started in late 1995 with AZT and 3TC and when I added the diffficult to take, but very powerful Crixivan in 1996 I gained nearky 40 pounds, went to the gym and was in the best shape of my life by 1998.  Then some subsequent problems with Videx, Zerit and Viracept but my current regimen of Prezista, Norvir and Truvada is pretty good.

But dear Miss Philly, you still didn't say what you thought of the Jersey Shore boys this time around in the Village Voice.   The article included talk of the down low sex in Asbury Park and Seaside.  Hmmmm what goes down in summertime, when the weather is hot ya know, donch ya?

Jody