Tag: Women | CATIE Blog

HIV PrEP and cisgender women: Are we meeting their needs?

November 11, 2025 • By Sugandhi del Canto

Despite its proven effectiveness among all genders, awareness of HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) remains low among women in Canada, with lower awareness reported among cisgender women. Some key populations with higher HIV incidence have received promotion of PrEP since it was first introduced, but cis women haven’t always benefitted from the same efforts. One possible reason may be that – at least in Canada – the largest burden of HIV incidence among cis women tends to be concentrated within subsets of this population: African, Caribbean and Black women, Indigenous women, and women who inject drugs, for example. The more intersections,...

Unlocking the Gates: From corrections to community

April 28, 2025 • By Mo Korchinski

People with prison experience are disproportionately affected by hepatitis C. Criminalizing drug use leads more people who use drugs to end up in prison settings, where a lack of access to sterile needles, syringes and tattoo equipment increases the risk of hepatitis C transmission. Barriers to care in prisons—and the many challenges people face after release—often lead people to go undiagnosed and untreated. Unlocking the Gates is a peer-led organization in British Columbia that supports individuals being released from corrections through a variety of services, including pre-release planning and transition support, probation/bail resolution and warrant support. To better understand what’s...

The impact of hepatitis C on women: Learnings from the CanHepC 2025 Symposium

April 28, 2025 • By Madison Kennedy

In February, CATIE attended the 14th Canadian Symposium on Hepatitis C, which was hosted by the Canadian Network for Hepatitis C (CanHepC) as part of the Canadian Liver Meeting. This national conference brought experts from across the country to Quebec City, where they showcased the latest in hepatitis C research. The symposium highlighted diverse perspectives on the theme “Hepatitis C in Women” from clinicians, researchers and people with lived and living experience of hepatitis C and substance use. During the event, CATIE asked presenters and attendees to share key takeaways from the conference about this important topic. Watch the short...

Let’s talk about menopause and HIV

November 21, 2023 • By Sugandhi del Canto

Thanks to advances in treatment and care, people living with HIV are enjoying longer, healthier lives. This also means that more people living with HIV are going through the journey of menopause, a significant life transition that many cisgender women, and some trans men and non-binary people, experience*. Despite a large number of women spending nearly half their lives in menopause, it is not commonly discussed as part of sexual and reproductive health, nor is it commonly discussed as part of HIV care. Added to this, many women do not feel they can seek out care for menopause, or when...

CAHR 2023: Interview videos with leaders in Canada’s response to HIV

August 17, 2023 • By CATIE

Every year the Canadian Association for HIV Research (CAHR) organizes Canada’s leading HIV research conference, where researchers, service providers, people living with HIV, policy-makers and advocates come together to exchange knowledge, share their work and learn about advances in HIV research. CATIE attended CAHR 2023 in Quebec City to tap into the latest discussions and debates in Canada’s HIV response. Learn more about what people were saying at the conference in the videos below. Canada’s progress on its HIV targets CATIE caught up with leaders in Canada’s response to HIV and asked them how Canada performed on its 2020 targets...

Remembering Joanne Lindsay

July 20, 2023 • By Laurie Edmiston

I was deeply saddened to learn the news of Joanne Lindsay’s passing from cancer on July 15, 2023, surrounded by her husband Hamza, son Charlie and daughter Chiku. Joanne was first elected to CATIE’s board of directors in 2017 and served as its treasurer for the last five years. She was a passionate community leader and contributed to the governance of multiple community-based organizations and programs, as well as being involved as a researcher, educator, mentor and community activist. I know that her former colleagues at the Ontario HIV Treatment Network, the Ontario AIDS Network, the MAP Centre for Urban...