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Iran joins UN program to end AIDS epidemic by 2030

Iran joins an international program aiming to end AIDS by 2030. (File photo)

Iran’s health officials say the Islamic Republic has joined an international program to end the AIDS epidemic by the year 2030.

According to the head of the AIDS Control Office of Iran’s Health Ministry, the Islamic Republic is deeply committed to meeting the new Fast-Track Targets established by the Joint United Nations Program on HIV and AIDS (UNAIDS) to create a world of zero new HIV infections and zero AIDS-related deaths.

“Meeting this international commitment is difficult, but possible,” said Abbas Sedaqat. “Some countries have already reached the goal.”

Sedaqat referred to prevention as the key to HIV treatment, saying that although there is no cure for the deadly disease, using medications can help patients enjoy a better life and live longer.

Participants in the UNAIDS program aim to create the necessary conditions for 90 percent of people living with HIV to know their HIV status, 90 percent of people who know their status to receive treatment and 90 percent of people on HIV treatment to have a suppressed viral load so their immune system remains strong and they are no longer infectious.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the number of HIV deaths reduced by 42 percent, from more than two million in 2004 to an estimated 1.2 million in 2014. Experts believe accelerating the pace to achieve the Fast-Track Targets would even be able to reverse the AIDS epidemic by 2020, causing the epidemic to start dwindling by 2030.


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