Community and activists demand for tenofovir/emtricitabine or lamivudine/dolutegravir and routine viral load testing

Since the beginning of the HIV epidemic, informed communities have demanded and fought for access to life-saving treatment. The last several years have seen interesting developments in this area - particularly with respect to the switch to dolutegravir (DTG)-based regimens and scale-up of routine viral load testing (RVLT), and how these directly and indirectly impact issues of treatment optimization, HIV drug resistance, and sexual and reproductive health. In this review, we present recent advances in antiretroviral treatment and monitoring in the context of how treatment education and community demand for them.

The latest developments with DTG and RVLT highlight underlying issues for global health systems that need to be addressed - including drug surveillance, supply chain management, and comprehensive care linkages - and the importance of community engagement in such issues.

Decisions about treatment must be grounded in informed community demand, and should exist in the context of optimal care and treatment across the entire HIV cascade. Informed advocacy is essential for people living with HIV and their communities, so that they benefit from existing and future therapeutic advances. Research is needed on the importance of community demand across the HIV treatment cascade.