Hundreds of Aids patients die without access to drugs

Hundreds of people infected with HIV/Aids in the Canadian province of British Columbia are dying without ever having been treated with life prolonging drugs, it has been revealed.

A study from the BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/Aids found that 40 per cent of the 1,436 people who died from HIV/Aids-related causes between 1997 and 2005 had never accessed antiretroviral drug cocktails that could have extended their lives by decades.

It concluded that the biggest at-risk groups were poor, homeless, mentally ill or drug-addicted people.

Dr Julio Montaner, director of the centre, said problems related to these groups would need to be tackled first, because those infected may not pursue long-term treatment while they are faced with more immediate concerns.

"We have a problem," he said. "The treatments are available for free but something is wrong because the people that most need the treatment, they're not always accessing the treatment."

"Factors such as a lack of housing or transportation, mental illness, illegal activity and language barriers play a role in an individual's ability to access treatment," he added.

Dr Montaner also estimated that approximately 25 per cent of Canada's HIV/Aids population is not aware that they're infected with the disease, explaining that the number who will die without treatment could be even larger than estimated.

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