Myths and facts about BBVs

No

When someone is described as living with HIV, they have the HIV virus in their body. A person is considered to have developed AIDS when the immune system is so damaged by HIV it can no longer fight off a range of diseases with which it would normally cope.

Nope

HIV can’t survive outside of the body, so you won’t get HIV from touching someone, hugging them or shaking their hand.

HIV can only be passed on from person to person if the virus from infected body fluids (such as blood, semen, vaginal or anal secretions and breast milk) gets into your bloodstream by having unprotected sex, sharing injecting equipment or more rarely from mother to child during pregnancy.

No

HIV is not always passed on from an infected person. There are lots of reasons why this is the case. For example, if the person living with HIV is on treatment it will reduce the amount of HIV in their body meaning it is unlikely to be passed on.

Like most illnesses, HIV doesn’t discriminate between types of people and the infection can be passed on to anyone.

Some people are more vulnerable to HIV infection if they engage regularly in certain activities (e.g. injecting drugs) that are more likely to transmit the virus. However, it’s a common misunderstanding that HIV only affects certain groups.

The symptoms of HIV can differ from person-to-person and some people may not get any symptoms at all. Without treatment, the virus will get worse over time and damage your immune system. You cannot tell by looking at someone if they have HIV. Many people don’t show any signs or symptoms. And, for people living with HIV who are on effective treatment, they are just as likely to be as healthy as everyone else.

With the right care, women living with HIV can give birth to children without passing on HIV. There are many types of medical interventions that can reduce the risk of mother-to-child transmission. If you are planning to start a family, speak to your specialist team and they will advise you about the best way to keep you, your partner and your children safe.

HIV is a very fragile virus that does not survive for long when exposed to the environment. There has never been a case of HIV infection from picking up or standing on a used needle in the UK. There is no risk of HIV infection from spitting and the risk of infection from biting is negligible.

Despite sometimes being talked about in the media, there is no evidence for this myth—commonly referred to as HIV-related ‘health-tourism’. In fact, the evidence shows that most migrants with HIV who come to the UK do not know they have it before they arrive (and are not diagnosed for several years) so are definitely not coming over here seeking treatment.

Effective HIV treatment means most people diagnosed nowadays with HIV are able to work just like everyone else and it is in fact illegal to discriminate against someone in recruitment or employment because they are living with HIV.

Not only can patients with hepatitis C be treated, they can also be cured. Today, there are more treatment options than ever before.  “Cured” means that the hep C virus is not detectable in your blood 3 months after treatment has ended.

If you have ever had hepatitis C, your blood will always contain hep C antibodies and antibody tests will always show up as positive or reactive however this does not mean you are infectious. A further test called a PCR test is required to show if the virus is currently active in your blood.

The newest treatments are a course of tablets taken over 8 – 12 weeks with very few side effects.  The older treatments for hep C involved weekly injections of interferon for up to a year; with lots of side effects but this treatment is a thing of the past.

Though it’s rare, you can get hep C through sexual contact. This is more likely to occur in men who have sex with men where bleeding occurs such as during anal or rough sex or when a woman has their period.

There is not currently a hepatitis C vaccine. Vaccines are only available for hepatitis A and B.