A new report by Public Health England shows that for the first time the number of new HIV diagnoses in gay and bisexual men outnumber new diagnoses in heterosexual adults by only 100 cases.
The number of gay and bisexual men (GBM) with newly diagnosed HIV fell to the lowest point in 20 years, according to a new report from Public Health England (PHE) published today.
The report shows there were 1,700 new HIV diagnoses in GBM in 2019 compared to 1,500 in 2000.
Overall, the number of people with a new HIV diagnoses fell by 10% (from 4,580 in 2018 to 4,139 in 2019). There was also a 34% decline from a peak of 6,312 new diagnoses in 2014.
There were 1,700 new HIV diagnoses in gay and bisexual men (GBM) in 2019 compared to around 1,600 cases in heterosexual adults. This is the lowest number of new HIV diagnoses in GBM since the year 2000 (1,500) and since 1998 in heterosexual adults (1,600).
HIV transmission in GBM has fallen by 80%; newly acquired HIV infections fell from an estimated peak of 2,700 cases in 2011 to an estimated 540 in 2019 (see background information).
While the proportion of people diagnosed late remained high at 42%, the overall number decreased from around 1,900 in 2015 to 1,300 in 2019. People diagnosed late in 2019 had an eight-fold risk of death compared to those diagnosed promptly.
The decline in HIV transmission in GBM can be directly linked to the increase in combination prevention, including:
the use of condoms
pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP)
frequent HIV testing in a wide range of settings
starting antiretroviral therapy (ART) as soon as possible after diagnosis
Treatment is now so effective that 97% of people receiving ART have undetectable levels of virus, which means it is impossible to pass the virus on, even if having sex without condoms. Undetectable = untransmittable (U=U).
HIV testing is vital for preventing HIV-related illness and death and to achieve the goal of ending HIV transmission in the UK by 2030. The UK continues to meet the United Nations Programme on HIV and AIDS (UNAIDS) 90-90-90 targets for the third consecutive year – however, there are opportunities to improve uptake of testing and support those testing positive to continue their treatment.
Almost 300,000 people declined to have an HIV test when they attended a specialist sexual health service. Black African heterosexual women attendees were more likely to decline a test than Black African heterosexual men (20% versus 9% declined testing) but less likely than heterosexual women and men overall (25% versus 13%). More focused conversations on HIV, testing, prevention and treatment in schools and clinical settings can help to combat high rates of declined tests.
By comparison, only 4% of GBM attending specialist sexual health services declined an HIV test – this is the group in which greatest declines in HIV transmission have been achieved.