Factors associated with attitudes toward HIV cure research among transgender women and travestis: a cross-sectional survey in São Paulo, Brazil

Objective: Characterizing the perceptions of groups most affected by HIV
is fundamental in establishing guidelines for biomedical advancement.
Although Brazil has successfully fought HIV/AIDS through several measures,
transgender women still have a likelihood of HIV infection 55 times higher
than the general population. This study aimed to better understand the
perception and awareness of HIV cure research among the trans-identifying
population in São Paulo, Brazil, and to determine factors that motivate or
discourage participation in HIV cure studies. Setting: This
cross-sectional study analyzed data collected from a questionnaire
administered to 118 transgender women and travestis at five sites within
the city of São Paulo. It utilizes quantitative methodology to describe
the perspectives of transgender and travesti people in relation to HIV
cure research and the context in which such perspectives are produced.
Results: Of 118 participants, most participants (73%) had some knowledge
of HIV cure research and were most willing to participate in online
surveys (52%), interviews (52%), focus groups (52%), and studies involving
blood draws (57%). Those with a higher education or employment status were
more likely to agree that someone had been cured of HIV, people living
with HIV are discriminated against, and more information about HIV cure
research is needed before the community embraces it. Only 55% of
participants completely trusted their physician. The biggest motivational
factors included gaining additional knowledge about HIV infection (77%)
and the potential for a longer, healthier life for all (73%). Conclusions:
As a primary analysis of HIV cure attitudes among the transgender and
travesti population as well as the social context in which they are
formed, this study identifies opportunities to strengthen the dialogue and
develop more educational collaborations between scientific investigators,
community educators, and the trans-identifying population to ensure that
HIV cure research is inclusive of diverse perspectives.

目标：刻画HIV最受影响群体的认知，对于制定生物医学进展指南至关重要。尽管巴西通过多项措施成功抗击HIV/AIDS，但跨性别女性的HIV感染风险仍比普通人群高55倍。本研究旨在深入理解巴西圣保罗跨性别群体对HIV治愈研究的认知与意识，并确定激励或阻碍其参与HIV治愈研究的因素。

研究背景：本横断面研究分析了从圣保罗市5个地点对118名跨性别女性及travestis进行问卷调查所收集的数据。研究采用定量方法，描述跨性别者及travestis对HIV治愈研究的观点，以及这些观点形成的背景。

结果：在118名参与者中，大多数（73%）对HIV治愈研究有一定了解，且最愿意参与在线调查（52%）、访谈（52%）、焦点小组（52%）及涉及抽血的研究（57%）。受教育程度较高或有工作的参与者更倾向于认同以下观点：有人已被治愈HIV、HIV感染者受到歧视、社区接受HIV治愈研究前需更多相关信息。仅55%的参与者完全信任其医生。最主要的激励因素包括获取更多HIV感染相关知识（77%）及为所有人带来更长寿、更健康生活的潜力（73%）。

结论：作为对跨性别者及travestis群体关于HIV治愈态度及其形成社会背景的初步分析，本研究发现了加强科学研究者、社区教育者与跨性别群体之间对话，并开展更多教育合作的机会，以确保HIV治愈研究纳入多元视角。