By KYIV. Dec 1 (Interfax-Ukraine) – In 2023, 9,769 HIV infection cases and 2,738 AIDS cases were recorded in Ukraine, the Ministry of Health has reported.
According to the ministry, as of November 1, 2023, a total of 158,803 HIV infection cases and 48,908 AIDS cases were identified in Ukraine.
The ministry said that in reality the numbers may be higher, since, according to estimates, at the end of 2021, one in four people with HIV did not know they are infected.
In Ukraine in 2022, 1,293 people died from AIDS-related illnesses, and during 2023, as of November 1, another 1,198 people died.
The Ministry of Health also reported that in 2023, 121,820 Ukrainians will receive ARV therapy, of which 119,730 are adults, 1,990 are children. At the same time, 7,500 Ukrainians with HIV receive ARV therapy in EU countries.
“It is the lack of habit of regular HIV testing that is the main problem in overcoming it. There is a reliable way to keep the virus under control with the help of medicine – this is antiretroviral therapy (ARV therapy), thanks to which HIV-infected people live a long and full life and give birth to healthy children and not spread the virus to others. It is free of charge,” the Ministry of Health said.
World AIDS Day is observed annually on December 1. AIDS has killed about 40.4 million people worldwide.
