Kratka A, Ubel PA, Scherr K, Murray B, Eyal N, Kirby C, Katz MN, Holtzman L, Pollak K, Freedburg K, Blumenthal-Barby J. HIV Cure Research: Risks Patients Expressed Willingness to Accept.
Ethics Hum Res 2020;
41:23-34. [PMID:
31743627 DOI:
10.1002/eahr.500035]
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Abstract
Despite doing well on antiretroviral therapy, many people living with HIV have expressed a willingness to accept substantial risks for an HIV cure. To date, few studies have assessed the specific quantitative maximal risk that future participants might take; probed whether, according to future participants, the risk can be offset by the benefits; and examined whether taking substantial risk is a reasonable decision. In this qualitative study, we interviewed 22 people living with HIV and used standard gamble methodology to assess the maximum chance of death a person would risk for an HIV cure. We probed participants' reasoning behind their risk-taking responses. Conventional inductive content analysis was used to categorize key themes regarding decision-making. We found that some people would be willing to risk even death for an HIV cure, and some of their reasons were plausible and went far beyond the health-related utility of an HIV cure. We contend that people's expressed willingness to take substantial risk for an HIV cure should not be dismissed out of hand.
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