The National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA) has warned Nigerians against unverified claims of a cure for HIV, saying modern antiretroviral treatment can suppress the virus to undetectable levels but does not eliminate it from the body.
The Director-General of NACA, Dr Temitope Ilori, gave the warning in Lagos during a media training on HIV prevention, including Pre-exposure Prophylaxis, organised in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare and the World Health Organisation.
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Ilori said advances in HIV treatment had fundamentally changed the outlook for people living with the virus, making it possible for patients who receive appropriate care to lead long and healthy lives.
She, however, cautioned against confusing effective treatment with a permanent cure.
“While ARV therapy can suppress HIV effectively, there is no cure for HIV as of today. An HIV diagnosis is no longer a death sentence, but it is not the same thing as being cured,” Ilori said.
She explained that antiretroviral drugs work by reducing the amount of HIV in the bloodstream to a level that routine testing may not detect. When the viral load is consistently suppressed, the immune system is protected and the risk of sexual transmission is eliminated.
This is captured in the public health principle known as “undetectable equals untransmittable”, or U=U.
Ilori said people who achieve and sustain an undetectable viral load through effective treatment do not sexually transmit HIV. She added that this development has enabled HIV-positive and HIV-negative couples to maintain relationships and have biological children without passing the virus to the HIV-negative partner, provided treatment is taken consistently and viral suppression is sustained.
The NACA chief expressed concern over cases in which people living with HIV abandon their medication after being falsely told that they have been healed.
“Early diagnosis and treatment can prevent HIV from progressing to AIDS. People who remain on effective treatment can maintain healthy immune systems, but feeling healthy after stopping medication does not mean the virus has disappeared,” she said.
Ilori added that claims of HIV cures had not been scientifically established and advised people who test positive to seek professional medical care rather than relying on unverified remedies.
Besides, she also mentioned the growing range of prevention options available to people who are HIV-negative but face substantial exposure risks.
According to her, Nigeria now has several PrEP options, including daily oral medication, event-driven or “2+1+1” PrEP, long-acting injectable cabotegravir administered at two-month intervals, and lenacapavir, a long-acting injectable prevention option administered twice a year.
She also called attention to persistent misconceptions surrounding HIV transmission. Ilori said some Nigerians still believe the virus could spread through ordinary contact such as hugging, handshakes, sharing food or drinks, or mosquito bites.
Such beliefs, she noted, contribute to stigma and discrimination against people living with HIV and can discourage vulnerable individuals from seeking testing and treatment.
The agency therefore placed accurate public information at the centre of Nigeria’s HIV response, with Ilori calling on the media to counter false claims about transmission, treatment and supposed cures.
She said Nigeria had recorded significant progress in its response to HIV but needed sustained attention to prevention, testing, and treatment to achieve epidemic control.
For the country’s health authorities, the challenge is no longer simply persuading Nigerians that HIV can be treated. It is ensuring that people know their status, those who test positive begin appropriate medication promptly, and patients have the support required to take their treatment consistently.
The message from NACA is consequently straightforward: HIV can be controlled to the point where the virus becomes undetectable and sexually untransmittable, but undetectable does not mean cured.
