Thousands in west London have HIV

Latest figures show boroughs have some of the highest rates of cases in the country

MORE than 6,000 adults in west London are getting treatment and care for HIV – with some boroughs having highest rates of people with the virus in the country.

Latest figures from Public Health England reveal 6,637 west Londoners aged 15-59 are accessing HIV-related care.

In Kensington and Chelsea, 935 people are receiving treatment, meaning around nine in every 1,000 people in the borough have been diagnosed with the virus – the fourth highest rate in England.

Westminster comes just behind, again with close to nine people in every 1,000 suffering from the disease, while eight people in every 1,000 in Hammersmith and Fulham have HIV. Other areas in West London see far fewer cases – Harrow has a rate of closer to three people receiving treatment for HIV in every 1,000.

In comparison, the London borough of Lambeth has the highest rate of HIV out of anywhere in the country, with closer to 15 cases per 1,000 of the population.

Richmondshire, in Yorkshire, and the Humber has the lowest, with only 10 people accessing HIV related care - or less than one person in every 1,000. Across England, more than 80,000 people were seen for HIV related care last year.

The number of people being treated for the virus has gone up massively over the last 10 years – in 2006, fewer than 48,000 people were receiving HIV treatment.

However, the number of new people being diagnosed each year has been steadily going down – 6,095 people were diagnosed with HIV in 2015, compared to 7,429 in 2006.