HIV 101: Does Being HIV-positive Mean I Also Have AIDS?

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HIV 101: Does Being HIV-positive Mean I Also Have AIDS?
No, but that's one of the most frequent assumtions people make.
 Diane Anderson-Minshall
          
          Dec 16, 2016
          
        
Diane Anderson-Minshall
Diane Anderson-Minshall is the CEO of Pride Media, and editorial director of The Advocate, Out, and Plus magazine. She's the winner of numerous awards from GLAAD, the NLGJA, WPA, and was named to Folio's Top Women in Media list. She and her co-pilot of 30 years, transgender journalist Jacob Anderson-Minshall penned several books including Queerly Beloved: A Love Across Genders.
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Does having HIV mean you have AIDS? Absolutely not.
In the U.S., the majority of people living with HIV will never develop AIDS, the most advanced stage of HIV disease, which is also called HIV stage 3.
HIV is the virus that causes AIDS, but for most people, proper treatment and regular medical care to keep your immune system strong will prevent you from ever developing AIDS. Remember, an HIV-positive test result means only that: You have HIV.

        
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HIV 101: Does Being HIV-positive Mean I Also Have AIDS?

No, but that's one of the most frequent assumtions people make.

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HIV 101: Does Being HIV-positive Mean I Also Have AIDS?

No, but that's one of the most frequent assumtions people make.

FROM OUR SPONSORS

The Latest

In honor of Black History Month, we highlight a few important Black leaders who’ve made incredible impact in the fight against HIV.

Opinion: The speaker reads the Trump Bible, while Pope Leo uses the King James Version, which teaches love, compassion, and acceptance, writes John Casey.

The out journalist, making a surprise appearance, talked about press freedom and his recent arrest.

"You know my wife’s name and you know Alex’s name, but there are many others in this city being harmed that you don’t know," Becca Good pointed out.

More For You

Most Popular

Turning Point USA is organizing a show headlined by Kid Rock for right-wingers upset with Bad Bunny's Super Bowl Halftime Show.

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Strayhorn wrote many of Ellington's big hits and lived as an out gay man in mid-century America.

“We want to make sure that Virginia families know that here in Virginia, it is not just a Supreme Court decision that protects them, but it is also our state constitution," the Democratic governor said.

These are some of his worst comments about LGBTQ+ people made by Charlie Kirk.

The gay actor delivered a 400-year-old monologue on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert that fiercely confronts American cruelty toward immigrants in 2026.