CTN 335: The British Columbia CARMA–CHIWOS Collaboration (BCC3)

About The Study

The British Columbia CARMA–CHIWOS Collaboration (BCC3; CTN 335) is an interdisciplinary partnership between two cohorts of women living with HIV: CTN 262: Canadian HIV women’s sexual and reproductive health cohort study (CHIWOS) and CTN 277: AntiRetroviral therapy and Markers of Aging (CARMA). CHIWOS is a pan-Canadian, community-based study examining women-centred HIV care and the sexual, reproductive, and mental health outcomes of women living with HIV in Canada. CARMA is a pan-Canadian cohort of women living with HIV and their children, and studies the effects of HIV and cART on biochemical markers of aging.

CTN 335 is an interdisciplinary study that aims to use a collaborative approach to understand how biological, clinical, and socio-structural determinants of health interact to support healthy aging in women living with HIV.

Background

Women living with HIV experience accelerated aging and an increased risk of age-associated diseases earlier in life compared to women without HIV. In addition, their life expectancy is 5–10 years shorter than women without the virus. While the reasons are not exactly clear, they likely relate to a combination of viral factors, gender differences, hormone imbalance, and socio-structural factors (e.g., discrimination, housing insecurity, and substance use) that impact stress pathways and inflammation.

Study Approach

CTN 335 is a community-based, holistic research study. It will enroll 350 women living with HIV and 350 socio-demographically similar HIV-negative women; some of the participants will have been involved in CHIWOS or CARMA. Over two study visits — one in the clinic and one in the community — the research team will collect blood, urine, hair, and saliva samples to measure the levels of seven chronic/latent viruses, hormone levels, and biological markers. They will also administer two surveys to gather information on demographic, clinical, and socio-structural factors. The data collected from participants with and without HIV will be compared, and associations between biological markers and socio-structural factors will be assessed.

The CTN 335 team have developed YouTube videos describing exactly what participants can expect at the study visits.