Grant: CIHR Clinical Trials Network in HIV/AIDS

Since 1990, the CIHR Canadian HIV Trials Network (CTN) has supported a thriving community of researchers and stakeholders who collaborate to produce impactful clinical research in HIV. Despite advancements in HIV treatment and practice, the need for reliable, outcome-oriented research to stem the epidemic is paramount. The CTN will address this need while engaging key populations affected by HIV, Hepatitis C and/or other sexually transmitted and blood-borne infections (STBBIs) as well as other related health conditions, while focusing on prevention and treatment. Backed by the CTN National Centre (which houses central administrative, methodological, and management services) and the CTN Research Core structure (which drives the HIV research agenda in Canada), the CTN has catalyzed collective action to test hypotheses and build the capacity of young researchers and community members living with and affected by HIV and related conditions. It does so by centralizing and sharing resources and expertise among researchers, clinical sites and leading health and research institutions and by engaging knowledge-brokers and members of the HIV community in both official languages. Seen through the lens of the World Health Organization's 'cascade of care', the CTN recognizes that HIV prevention, testing, ART initiation, adherence and treatment success are all influenced by several factors such as social stigma, discrimination and other barriers. These priorities are underpinned by the prospect for a cure and the quest to understand and eliminate viral reservoirs. The CTN proposes a renewed scientific vision for 2019-2024 through a National and Strategic Research Agenda for HIV research in Canada. This will be actualized by teams of researchers working within the CTN's four Research Cores (Prevention; Co-infections & Related Conditions; Clinical Care & Management; and Vaccines & Immunotherapies) and through the CTN's proposed Cross-Core Community Collaboration Teams.