The latest generation of HIV medical technology is making breakthroughs in care for HIV-positive patients, and in containing the epidemic in many African countries. The latest blood test, known as the viral load test, offers patients hope for a future free from the possible complications triggered by the virus. During 2013 Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) performed the test on around 30,000 patients in Zimbabwe.
"We collect blood samples of 3-5 ml from patients at the different health centres. We then take them in the MSF four-wheel drive to the laboratory where the specialised staff prepare the samples to be sent to South Africa where they will be analysed," explains Susana Villen, a doctor from Zaragoza, who has recently returned to Spain after spending more than two years in Zimbabwe as medical coordinator of MSF's HIV project in Tsholotsho.
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