HIV self-testing kits to be made available on the high street for first time

HIV self-testing kits are to be available to buy on the high street for the first time, a retailer has announced.

Superdrug said

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has become the first high street retailer to offer an HIV selftesting kit across its 200 Pharmacy stores for £33.99. The BIOSURE HIV Self Test was previously available to buy online. The kit became the first legally approved self test- ing kit in 2015, with a 99.7 per cent accuracy rate. It uses a small amount of blood from a finger prick sample to detect the presence of HIV antibodies and offers a result in just 15 minutes. Superdrug said making the kit more widely available will help reduce a person’s waiting time between taking the test and their result. It could also help increase early diagnosis rates.

Duetodevelopmentsintreatments, HIV can be a manageable disease but late diagnosis can have a devastating impact on health and life expectancy.

Dr Pixie Mckenna, a GP and Superdrug’s health expert, said: “Superdrug’s move to encourage and empower patients to self-test for HIV is one step forward in our fight against this disease. While there is no cure, early diagnosis is key.

“Patients successfully managed on HIV treatments have normal life expectancy, but to know you need treatment you need to know your diagnosis.”