Canada is lifting its strict lifetime ban on gay men giving blood, although restrictions will still be in place.

The Canadian Blood Services are hoping to have the new policy in place by mid-summer 2013.

While there will no longer be a lifetime ban, men who have not had sex with other men in the last five years will be allowed to donate blood.

The new policy will replace the existing screening criteria, which excludes potential male donors who have had sex with another man since 1977 — the year HIV began spreading rapidly throughout North America.

I’ve been a supporter of NAT (National AIDS Trust), the UK’s leading HIV campaigning charity, for five years now. One of the reasons I support them is I am passionate about increasing the public’s understanding of HIV – not only to reduce the spread of the virus, but to help eradicate the stigma that unfortunately many people with HIV face.

Over the next year NAT will be campaigning for sex education in schools to better tackle the issue of HIV and address same-sex relationships.

This is an issue that is close to my heart.

Researchers are optimistic about a new technique that could lead to a breakthrough in curing HIV.

Danish scientists are readying the human trials for a potentially life-saving new HIV treatment, and if it is deemed a success, it is hopeful 2013 could be the year there is a cure for the virus.

The possibly revolutionary technique involves releasing the HIV virus from ‘reservoirs’ it forms inside DNA, bringing it to the surface of the cells.

The US National Institute of Health has ended a trial of what had been believed to be a potential HIV vaccine after it failed to stop people contracting the virus and failed to reduce the viral load of those already infected with HIV.

The clinical trial of the HVTN 505 vaccine was begun in 2009 by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) and involved 2,504 participants in 19 cities across the US but was stopped when more of those who were receiving the vaccine contracted HIV than those on placebos.

Gay sex is to blame for most of 2,000 new HIV infections in China last year, according to health experts.

Over 1,700 college students were infected with HIV in 2012, approximately 65% of which were contracted through sex with people of the same gender, according to Xinhau News Agency.

Most of the 1,700 cases were male students, said deputy director of the National Center for AIDS/STD Control and Prevention Wang Ning.

Ning said that more people getting tested for HIV is one reason for a rise in new cases.

Transgender women are 49 times more likely to have HIV than the general population, a new study has found.

Suggesting nearly a fifth of all trans women worldwide have HIV, the study involved over 11,000 women in 15 different countries from around the world.

The Terrence Higgins Trust brings its biggest fundraiser event back to the UK and this year’s theme is animals and wildlife.

‘Walk For Life’ is an annual event, now in its 24^th year, raising money to help people living with HIV in the UK today.

Participants of all ages can come dressed as any animal they like. They can wear make-up, jungle themed clothes or complete costumes. Plain-clothed walkers are also welcome to take part.

When was the last time you thought about being a superhero and saving a life?

When I ask people, 'Who is an everyday superhero?' you might answer a firefighter, police officer, doctor, those in the military who serve our country. But we can all potentially be a superhero. You may already be one and not even know it, because you can donate blood.

Each time we donate blood we can save up to three lives. Someone who has suffered a car accident can use an average 100 pints of blood. At that moment when you donate blood you are saving a life. That makes you a hero.

A proposed bill in Kansas is calling for people with HIV or AIDS to be quarantined.

Lawmakers are close to passing a new law discriminating against those who have HIV or AIDS, forcing them to be isolated or have their movements restricted.

Kansas House Bill 2183, which has passed in the Kansas Senate, will update the state’s public health statute by allowing quarantine of Kansans with ‘infectious diseases.’

Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni has said persecution against gay people will be investigated while apparently distancing himself from the nation’s proposed ‘Kill the Gays Bill’.

Museveni was speaking with human rights activists from a US delegation led by Kerry Kennedy, the president of the Robert F Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights.

Bee venom could be the key to preventing HIV, scientists have found in a new study.

In a study in the current issue of Antiviral Therapy, it shows a chemical in the insect’s venom can destroy the virus while leaving surrounding cells unharmed.

A potent toxin in bee stings called melittin kills HIV cells by punching holes through their protective outer layer.

It is now being hailed as an important step towards developing a gel that could stem the spread of HIV.

The doctors of an HIV infected  baby have announced they have cured the child.

As reported by the New York Times, the infant was born in rural Mississippi (a southern US state). Antiretroviral drugs were administered approximately 30 hours after birth. This type of procedure is uncommon with newborns, but could  turn into standard procedure if the case is confirmed.