Roughly half a million people worldwide take the medication, which is more than 99 per cent effective in preventing HIV when taken correctly. The sexual health and gay community advocate has chosen to share his story to prevent misinformation that could devalue the effectiveness of PrEP. "What happened to me doesn’t change the fact that PrEP is still the most powerful HIV preventative we have ever had," said Mr Spencer, one of the first men in Australia to start taking the medication more than five years ago. Multiple international clinical trials have demonstrated that PrEP effectively prevents HIV transmission. Most of the trials involve daily PrEP dosing. Though there is a growing body of evidence demonstrating the effectiveness of ‘on-demand’ use. Loading

"It is protecting hundreds of thousands of people from HIV in an empowering way, alongside effective treatment for people living with HIV," Mr Spencer said. The PrEP drug Truvada has been available in Australia on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme since April 2018. Thousands of gay men previously had access to the drug via clinical trials or by importing it from overseas. ACON chief executive Nicolas Parkhill said, "What we do not want to see happen is people doubting the effectiveness of PrEP in preventing HIV and stop taking their pills." Andrew Grulich, program head of HIV Epidemiology and Prevention at the University of NSW's Kirby Institute, said PrEP had been a "game-changer for HIV prevention in Australia". Kirby Institute data showed HIV infections declined by almost one-third following the EPIC-NSW PrEP trial.

Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video Professor Grulich said most of the HIV seroconversion cases identified had involved a virus that is resistant to the anti-viral medication contained in PrEP. "PrEP only works if it is taken correctly, so non-adherence is certainly a factor in some cases," he said. Professor Grulich said the extremely rare cases did not contradict the global scientific consensus that PrEP was an extremely effective HIV prevention tool. "Individuals should remain confident of PrEP’s effectiveness," he said.

Loading Mr Spencer started HIV treatment immediately after diagnoses and within six weeks achieved an "undetectable viral load" meaning he cannot transmit HIV to anyone. He said it was "one of the toughest periods of my life". Today Mr Spencer lives "happily and healthily with HIV", confident that he can protect others from the virus and safeguard his health for years to come. Daily doses of PrEP is recommended in Australian clinical guidelines.