Despite huge advances in the fight against HIV concerning diagnosis, clinical efficacy of antiretroviral treatments ART , patient survival and quality of life, there is still no cure. Recent developments in HIV cure research have opened the way for clinical trials which could lead to a temporary or definitive end to ART.
However, ethical questions exist about related trial-participation risks. Thirty-three statements were defined encompassing seven dimensions: treatment and follow-up; risks; benefits; patient-physician relationship; beliefs and attitudes; information; target population. All placed importance on the wish to participate in HIV research. This result is in line with the HIV-specific culture of joint mobilization.
Finally, some expressed a high acceptance of risks and constraints but emphasized the need for information. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License , which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Data Availability: All relevant data are within the paper and its Supporting Information files. Competing interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist. Since the advent of HIV and the first AZT treatment [ 1 ], huge advances have been made in terms of detection of the virus, clinical efficacy, patient survival and quality of life QoL [ 2 β 5 ]. Current antiretroviral treatments ART are well-tolerated and cause fewer side-effects, but do not cure the virus, mainly because of viral persistence in cell reservoirs [ 6 ].
In addition to the difficulty of treatment adherence over such a long period, daily medicine is a constant reminder to the patient of the disease. Furthermore, it impacts QoL and is associated with long-term comorbidities. Moreover, despite HIV becoming a manageable chronic illness, risky behaviours [ 7 ] and stigmatization [ 8 , 9 ] are still matters of concern. In addition, ART have serious economic consequences on public health [ 10 ]. Participating in HCRCT may have consequences on daily lives because of treatment administration and follow-up procedures, and on health because of potential treatment side-effects and ART interruption.
