Former Welsh rugby captain Gareth Thomas, who disclosed his HIV-positive status in 2019, is leading a global campaign to break the fear surrounding the virus. The Tackle HIV initiative, launched in partnership with ViiV Healthcare and the Terrence Higgins Trust, aims to educate communities that modern treatment makes HIV a manageable condition.
Thomas, speaking at a Tackle HIV event on Ipanema Beach during the 2026 International AIDS Conference, told NPR that “people are still afraid of those three letters.” He added that a positive test, with all the advances in medicine, is no longer a death sentence.
“Many people don’t know that you can live a normal, happy, healthy life if you start medication straight away, and so people avoid getting tested, avoid the result or avoid the medicine taking,” Thomas said.
In Brazil, which has the largest HIV-positive population in Latin America, stigma keeps people from testing and treatment. According to the NPR report, 27% of those living with HIV are diagnosed only at an advanced AIDS stage.
Activists like Welton Gabriel have lost friends after revealing their status, and Fabiana de Oliveira described the burden of blame placed on women. Both said that fear of judgment often forces people to stop taking life-saving antiretrovirals.
South Africa, with an estimated 7.8 million people living with HIV according to UNAIDS, faces similar challenges. The Treatment Action Campaign has repeatedly highlighted how stigma in townships like Khayelitsha and Mitchells Plain discourages testing and treatment adherence.
UNAIDS data shows that South Africa has the world’s largest HIV epidemic, with over 7.5 million people living with the virus. The country provides free antiretroviral drugs, but many avoid clinics because of the fear of being seen and judged.
“It’s fundamental to get the important message across that receiving a positive test is no longer a death sentence,” Thomas said in Rio.
Beatriz Grinsztejn, an infectious-disease specialist, told NPR that people do not access what is available, and it is painful to see. Her remarks echo the frustration of South African doctors who witness patients arriving with advanced disease due to late testing.
This story is based on reports by NPR and Agência Brasil; CapeFlats.co.za has not independently verified the Brazilian statistics. The exact extent of HIV-related stigma on the Cape Flats remains unquantified, but local health groups insist the barrier is severe.
The author, Asanda Mkhize, will contact the Western Cape Department of Health for comment on local stigma reduction programmes by Wednesday. CapeFlats.co.za will update this story as community reactions emerge.