Top 10 HIV Clinical Developments of 2015

"May you live in interesting times," is shakily purported to be an old Chinese curse. Regardless of its origin, when reflecting on the top HIV-related stories of 2015, I find that the idea that life is better when things are quiet both does and does not hold up.

Who can complain about exciting, newer medications and novel ways to use them to treat HIV and hepatitis C (HCV), or new data that shed light on old issues such as the optimal timing of HIV therapy or the role of HIV in aging?

However, we can certainly do without the depressing news of an HIV and HCV outbreak in southern Indiana that was both predictable and preventable, or that the bold expansion of health care insurance is under attack by many who would rather score a victory against their political opponents than on behalf of the people they were elected to represent.

What is most interesting about the past year's events is how our wonderful capacity for invention and innovation is matched by our incredible and frustrating ability to screw things up.

So here are both the commendable and the concerning: my top 10 stories from 2015.

Table of Contents

• START at the Finish

• Tenofovir Alafenamide Fumarate (TAF) Is FDA Approved

• Dolutegravir Minimalism

• Long-Acting HIV Treatment Is No Longer a Long Shot

• Hepatitis C Cures in HIV/HCV Coinfection

• Real World PrEP

• Tragedy in Scott County, Indiana

• Evidence Against Accelerated Aging Among People Living With HIV

• Adverse Childhood Events and Risk for HIV

• King v. Burwell: U.S. Supreme Court Again Upholds Affordable Care Act

David Alain Wohl, M.D., is an associate professor of medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases at the University of North Carolina and site leader of the University of North Carolina AIDS Clinical Trials Unit at Chapel Hill.