Model shows promise of targeted approaches

Expressing concern about decreases in both funding for voluntary medical male circumcision (VMMC) and the annual number of men circumcised, presenters at a session on VMMC at the International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2016) emphasised that continued uptake of the procedure is essential to reaching a 75 percent reduction in new HIV infections by 2020, as well as sustained control of the pandemic. Science Speaks reports that a modeling study presented during the session found that the magnitude of VMMC’s impact on HIV would be greatest if programmes reached young men ages 15 to 24, and an approach reaching those ages 15 to 34 would be most cost-effective. The 11.7 million VMMC procedures performed so far will have prevented an estimated 335,000 HIV infections by 2025 (Science Speaks, 26 July 2016).