Advocacy

Research

•Joan Kreiss presents the findings of her study on the effectiveness of the Today sponge, containing Nonoxynol-9 versus a placebo suppository on HIV transmission among sex workers in Nairobi. The findings cast a pall on microbicide research and spark a decade-long debate about the safety and effectiveness of N-9 for STI protection.

•South African epidemiologist and advocate Zena Stein publishes her seminal article, "HIV Prevention: The Need for Methods Women Can Use", in the American Journal of Public Health 80:460-462.

•Delegates to the first National Conference on Women and HIV Infection recommend the "develop[ment] of better barrier/contraceptive methods and virucides which are effective, safe and acceptable to women." "Especially needed", notes the report, "are methods which are woman-controlled and may be used without detection by their sexual partners".

•Lori Heise starts investigating alternatives to the male condom after facilitating a workshop on women's vulnerability to HIV/AIDS at the 1991 AIDS Prevention Conference sponsored by USAID.

•Chris Elias of the Population Council and Lori Heise begin collaborating on microbicide issues; First consultation on microbicides held at the Population Council in New York.

•Women's health advocates and scientists meet in Geneva to discuss contraceptive research priorities and methods at a meeting sponsored by the International Women's Health Coalition (IWHC) and the Special Programme of Research, Development and Research Training in Human Reproduction of WHO. The resulting report, "Creating Common Ground" calls for greater attention to barrier methods of contraception that are user-controlled and help protect against infection as well as pregnancy.

•Elias and Heise organise an international symposium on the need for and feasibility of developing topical microbicides at the Population Council in New York City. Fifty advocates, scientists and policymakers attend.

•Forty-four women leaders from 20 countries meet in Barbados in 1992 and issue a "Call to Action to End Reproductive Tract Infections" at a meeting co-sponsored by the IWHC and the Women and Development Unit of the University of the West Indies. The Call includes a strong demand for more research into microbicides. [pdf].

•Anna Forbes writes "Urgent need: A condom alternative", an op-ed column published in Philadelphia Daily News on 11/6/92 --the start of mainstream, popular press coverage of the need for microbicides.

•Elias and Heise publish "The Development of Microbicides: A New Method of HIV Prevention for Women" a seminal working paper that summarised for the first time the need for and science behind microbicides. An adapted version of the paper was published in the journal AIDS in 1994 vol 8: 1-9.

•Health and Human Services Secretary Donna Shalala identifies $10 million for NIH Topical Microbicide Initiative.

•At urging of Heise, the Reproductive Health Technologies Project and the Center for Women's Policy Studies team up to form the Microbicide Advocacy Project. This project sponsors a limited number of events over the next two years.

•The International Women's Health Coalition (IWHC), Population Council and Heise hold an 8-day consultation on microbicides in New York for women's health advocates; Group decides to form the Women's Health Advocates on Microbicide (WHAM).

•Heise and Elias organise panel on microbicides at the IX International Conference on HIV/AIDS in Berlin, Germany.

•Anna Forbes offered a microbicides presentation at the National HIV/AIDS Skills Building Conference --the first of over 100 grassroots seminars and workshops on microbicides that she presented across the US in the following decade.

•National Institutes of Health and FDA sponsor first Topical Microbicide Workshop.

•The World Health Organization (WHO) holds the first international scientific consultation on microbicides, entitled "Development of vaginal microbicides for the prevention of heterosexual transmission of HIV," This meeting marks the beginning of the UN's commitment to microbicide development (November 1993).

•The National Institutes of Health establishes the HIVNET, a government-funded clinical trials infrastructure to test new HIV prevention technologies. Originally designed primarily in anticipation of testing an HIV vaccine, the HIVNET has become a major sponsor of trial sites for microbicides.

•The UK Medical Research Council establishes its viricidal working group to promote research to develop and test "chemical agents for intravaginal use for the prevention of HIV."

•International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) held in Cairo Egypt. The final Programme of Action specifically identifies microbicides as one of three priority areas for reproductive health research. The document also notes that "users, in particular women's, perspectives and women's organisations should be incorporated into all stages of the research and development process."

•Second meeting of the WHAM collective. WHAM and Population Council sponsor one-day international meeting on "acceptability" research.

•The International Working Group on Microbicides (IWGM) is formed, with initial support from the WHO Global Programme on AIDS, to facilitate collaboration between research institutes working on microbicides.

•NIH issues its first request for proposals to support research into microbicides (March 1994). NIH approves the first grants under this request in 1995 (see below).

•Centers for Disease Control and Prevention holds its first briefing for staff and management on Topical Microbicides.

•The Pipeline: 21 product leads identified; considerably less under active development.

•US White House Summit on AIDS recommendations include research on topical microbicides

•WHAM holds consultation on user perspectives & helps the Population Council design multi country acceptability study.

•Heise testifies before the research subcommittee of the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS (PACHA) President's Advisory Council forwards recommendation for microbicide funding to President Clinton

•US White House Summit on AIDS' recommendations include research on topical microbicides

•The US National Institutes of Health issues its first grants, known as program project grants for microbicide-specific research (totally $1.5 million in 1995).

•At the Vancouver AIDS Conference, Health and Human Services Secretary Donna Shalala announces a $100 million initiative to support microbicide research.

•Population Council launches first Phase I trial of novel microbicide (Carraguard)

•Heise invited to testify in front of the full committee of the Presidents Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS.

•At the Vancouver AIDS Conference, Health and Human Services Secretary Donna Shalala announces a $100 million initiative to support microbicide research.

•Christopher Elias and Christa Coggins are invited to present a plenary talk on "Female-controlled method to prevent sexual transmission of HIV" at the XI International Conference on AIDS in Vancouver Canada. A version of this plenary is published in the journal AIDS vol 10 (suppl3): s43-s51.

•WHAM and Population Council sponsor major international symposium on the practical a ethical dilemmas of testing topical microbicides; 55 scientists, advocates and policy makers attend from 19 countries.

•The Women's Health Action Foundation (WHAF), a Dutch NGO and member organisation of WHAM, sponsors a consultation of Dutch and Belgian NGOs on microbicides and women's prevention needs.

•WHAM decides to formally disband, noting that the field had matured so much that it no longer made sense to have an advocacy effort focused exclusively on the microbicide program of one entity -- the Population Council.

•CONRAD sponsors workshop on microbicide formulation.

•UK Medical Research Council conducts industry survey indicating little industrial interest in microbicides.

•Polly Harrison, Kevin Whaley and Lori Heise found the Alliance for Microbicide Development, a consortium of scientists, bio-tech companies and advocates dedicated to accelerating the pre-clinical development of microbicides. Semi-annual meetings begin.

•Advocates launch the Global Campaign for Microbicides and begin circulating the Petition for Greater Investment in Microbicide R&D.

•Advocates meet and develop, "A Call to Action: Ten Point Plan to Accelerate Microbicide Development".

•The President's Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS (PACHA) adopts Ten Point Plan as basis for their recommendations to President Bill Clinton on microbicides. Advocates briefs Neal Nathanson, new Director of the Office of AIDS Policy, at the US National Institutes of Health.

•The Women and AIDS Support Network of Zimbabwe launches the Global Campaign's Petition for Great Investment in Microbicides on World AIDS Day.

•The Pipeline: Approximately 33 product leads identified; 12 in or ready for human safety trials

•CONRAD, Family Health International and the IWGM host meeting on Opportunities for Industrial Collaboration in Microbicides/Spermicides, Durham, North Carolina, October 21-23, 1998.

•The Global Campaign launches its legislative program and begins to cultivate local campaign sites in the districts of key appropriators.

•CDC, NIH, Johns Hopkins University, and women's health advocates organise a two-day meeting on social science research priorities in the area of topical microbicides.

•Representatives Connie Morella (R-MD) and Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) introduce the Microbicides Development Act of 2000 (HR 3891).

•Advocates meet with Dr. Tony Fauci, head of NIAID, which results in Fauci agreeing to increase NIAID spending on microbicides by $7 million for FY 2000

•The Global Campaign and partner groups sponsor a "Microbicides Advocacy Day," to coincide with the Microbicides 2000 conference in Washington DC. Over 50 scientists and advocates made 22 visits to key Congressional offices.

•The Global Campaign and the Alliance for Microbicide Development secure legislative language directing the US Agency for International Development to increase funding for microbicide research to $15 million in FY2001.

•The Rockefeller Foundation convenes a international group of scientists, research organisation, advocates and industry representatives to explore ways to greatly accelerate microbicide development. This group in turn establishes six key working groups to develop a scientific blueprint, a pharmaco-economic and public health analysis, an access agenda, and an advocacy plan.

•The first ever large-scale international conference on microbicides, Microbicides 2000, is held in Washington D.C. on March 13-16. The meeting attracts over 600 participants from 40 countries.

•At the Durban AIDS Conference, UNAIDS releases results of theirmulti-year trial to evaluate the effectiveness of Advantage S (a contraceptive gel containing 52 mg of Nonoxynol-9) against HIV and STIs. The product was not effective and may have actually increased risk of HIV transmission.

•The International Working Group on Microbicides (IWGM) sponsors a one-day, international consultation on microbicides for representatives from Europe, the US and developing countries (November 3, 2000).

•The CONRAD program at Eastern Virginia Medical School launches the Global Microbicide Project (GMP) with a $25 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

•The 5th National Convention of the Indian Network of NGOs on HIV/AIDS spotlights microbicides and the female condom, February 23-25, 2001.

•The United Nations General Assembly holds a special session on HIV & AIDS, known as UNGASS. The final document includes a call for increased research into microbicides and other prevention technologies.

•The UK Mission to the UN, Population Council and the Rockefeller Foundation sponsor a high-level briefing on microbicides at UNGASS.

•The Global Campaign for Microbicides sponsors a three-day international meeting for advocates on microbicides. Sixty advocates from 28 countries attend.

•Planned Parenthood Golden Gate, UCSF AIDS Research Institute, the San Francisco AIDS Foundation, and the Stanford Center for Women and Gender co sponsor with the Global Campaign, a symposium for 150 state opinion leaders in California.

•The International Community of Women Living with HIV/AIDS sponsors a workshop on prevention options for women at the meeting of the Global Network of People with HIV/AIDS in Trinidad.

•The National Institutes of Health sponsor the first-ever scientific meeting on developing microbicides for rectal use, June 7-8, 2001.

•The Pipeline: Over 55 product leads identified; eleven in advanced safety testing in humans

•The Global Campaign for Microbicides, International Center for Research on Women, and the Alliance for Microbicide Development host an event at the Washington Press Club to launch "Mobilization for Microbicides," the summary report of the consultative process convened by the Rockefeller Foundation. Over 150 people attend.

•The Honorable Clare Short, UK Secretary of State for International Development, enthusiastically endorses microbicides at the European launch of the Rockefeller Foundation funded working papers and the DFID grant.

•The Global Campaign for Microbicides hosts a meeting in London for European NGOs to develop a strategy session for microbicide advocacy in Europe.

•WHO sponsors meeting on Scientific Basis for Regulatory Decisions on Microbicides, Switzerland, 3-6 March, 2002.

•The International Partnership for Microbicides was formed

• National Policy Makers meeting in India results in the formation of a multi-sectoral National Microbicides Working Group.

• A European secretariat for the Global Campaign is formally established in Brussels

• The Nigerian HIV Microbicides and Vaccines Advocacy Group (NHVMAG) is established, led by a secretariat hosted by long-time Global Campaign partner, Journalists Against AIDS

• GCM hosts Global Consultation on clinical trial ethics

• The first Canadian Microbicides Symposium is convened.

• The African Microbicides Advocacy Group is formally launched at the Microbicides 2004 conference.

• On World AIDS Day, the Global Campaign launches its documentary film, “In Women’s Hands” and its walk-through exhibit entitled, “Giving Women Power Over AIDS”.

• Canada contributes CAN$15 million to IPM; the Global Campaign was instrumental in procuring this funding.

• Large scale effectiveness trials start for the first five new candidate microbicides. These trials are expected to take 4-5 years to complete and to enroll between 3,000 to 11,000 women each.

• IPM announces an agreement with Tibotec Pharmaceuticals to develop an antiretroviral drug (TMC-120) as a microbicide. This is the first participation by a major pharmaceutical corporation in Microbicide R&D.

• A Microbicide Donors' Committee is formed to facilitate increased coordination and information sharing across the field.

• An International Rectal Microbicides Working Group is formed to advocate for increased investment and scientific commitment to the development of microbicides for use during anal sex.

• GCM launches the Microbicides Media and Communications Initiative.

• Fearing a repetition of the N-9 trial outcome (see 2000), advocates demand assurance that safeguards be added to the Phase 3 trial protocol for Savvy. An “early” review by the study’s external and independent Data and Safety Monitoring Board (DSMB) is added to look explicitly for any evidence suggesting that product use might be causing harm to participants.

• After five years of working with local consultants, the Global Campaign hires its first staff members in Africa and India

• At Microbicides 2006, a new conference track is created exclusively to address advocacy and community involvement activities within the field.

• PATH and IAVI hold a workshop in India to learn from past technology tools.

• Canada develops first ever National Action Plan on microbicides.

• Phase 3 effectiveness trial of Savvy is stopped. The early DSMB look shows no evidence that it is increasing participants’ risk but the DSMB concludes that the study is unlikely to detect a reduction in the HIV risk, if continue.

• Trials show male circumcision has protective effect for men.

• XVI International AIDS Conference takes place in Toronto, Canada where microbicides finally reach a “tipping point” in term of public attention and commitment.

• U.S. National Institutes of Health commit to creating a dedicated microbicides branch after many years of pressure from advocates

• Cellulose sulfate trials close.

• CAPRISA 004 begins enrollment – marking the start of the first effectiveness trial on an ARV based microbicide

• Number of civil society groups endorsing the Global Campaign for Microbicides tops 300

• Lori Heise, GCM director, receives Inaugural Omololu Falobi Award for Excellence in HIV Prevention Research Community Advocacy

• At Microbicides 2008 in New Delhi - India, the first Advocates Corner is created, a space where delegates representing community, advocacy and civil society could come together

• Phase 3 Trial proves Carraguard safe but not effective against HIV

• HPTN035 provides first human data showing that vaginal gel can reduce HIV risk for women