Dr. Cohen talks about the rules to fighting infections during the Lancet-CAMS health summit.
Myron Cohen, chief of UNC’s Division of Infectious Diseases and director of the Institute for Global Health and Infectious Diseases, visited with UNC Project-China staff and partners in October 2016, making presentations in three cities and serving as keynote speaker at the Lancet-Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences health summit in Beijing.
Cohen began his research career in China more than 30 years ago. Based in Chapel Hill, NC, he visits China annually and talks regularly with UNC Project-China Director Joseph Tucker, MD, PhD.
Guangdong Provincial STD Control Center in Guangzhou
By Alice Zhang, BS, UNC Doris Duke Fellow (2016-2017)
Dr. Cohen delivered a lecture at the Guangdong Provincial STD Control Center in Guangzhou on Oct. 25. His lecture focused on the ethical challenges encountered during the HIV Prevention Trials Network (HPTN) 052 trial, of which he was principal investigator. This multinational randomized clinical trial demonstrated the concept of “treatment as prevention” and resulted in the 2015 World Health Organization recommendations that antiretroviral treatment be offered to all people living with HIV (PLHIV), regardless of CD4+ count. During his Guangzhou visit, Dr. Cohen also visited the Number Eight People’s Hospital, which is a key infectious diseases hospital that treats the most people living with HIV in southern China.
National Conference on HIV/AIDS in Chengdu
By Kumi Smith, PhD, UJMT Fogarty Global Health Postdoctoral Fellow
Next, Dr. Cohen traveled to Chengdu to participate in the 2016 Chinese National Conference on HIV/AIDS as the keynote speaker. Addressing an audience of over 2,000, Dr. Cohen described the trajectory of HIV/AIDS research to date, and provided insights into future directions of inquiry in the areas of prevention, treatment and cure. Participants were made up of experts across many fields of HIV/AIDS research – from microbiology and immunology, clinical care, behavioral research, and epidemiology – and hailed from across China’s 31 provinces and autonomous regions as well as several international countries.
Stanford Center at Peking University in Beijing
By Joseph Tucker, MD, PhD, Director of UNC Project China
Dr. Cohen gave a seminar-style talk on Oct. 28, to the Stanford Center at Peking University. His talk there was for undergraduates, graduate students and faculty at Stanford’s Center. The center is the university’s hub for faculty and students engaged in research, teaching, training and outreach activities in China. Dr. Cohen was hosted by Jean C. Oi, MA, PhD, the William Haas Professor in Chinese Politics, and Andrew Walder, PhD, the Denise O’Leary & Kent Thiry Professor at the School of Humanities and Sciences. Dr. Cohen has known these two China experts since they trained together at the University of Michigan, and were all some of the first U.S. visitors to China during the post-reform period.
Lancet-CAMS in Beijing
By Weiming Tang, PhD, MD, MS, Assistant Director of UNC Project-China
As a keynote speaker for Lancet-Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences health summit, Dr. Cohen spoke on fighting infections to an audience of about 500 people in different fields of medical research in China. Dr. Cohen mentioned that the number one thing we need in order to fight against infections is to know the rule of the infections. He briefly mentioned how we use these rules to deal with new emerging infectious diseases such as SARS and Zika in recent years. Taking AIDS prevention and control as an example, he introduced what researchers have been learning about the different stages of HIV transmission by studying people who are unexposed, exposed (precoital/coital), exposed (postcoital) and infected.