Entertainer and gay rights activist Rory O’Neill (Panti Bliss) has called on gay men in Ireland to get tested for HIV, stressing the advantage of knowing your HIV status.
Speaking at the launch of the Janssen and Gay Health Network Know the Score: Get Tested campaign, O’Neill encouraged gay men around the country to go out and get tested.
“As someone who is HIV positive and leads a healthy life, I would encourage everybody to get tested,” he said.
"It was quite a long time ago now and at the time, of course, it was a very different story. It was essentially a death sentence and it took some getting used to. I was very lucky, because within a year or two all of the new drug treatments that are now so available were beginning to come on stream."
"Treatments improved very quickly over the years since I've been diagnosed. It's a whole other landscape now. That's why it's important to get tested and know you're status, because the sooner you know your status, the sooner you can be treated."
"It's still an awkward conversation often to have with people, because there's still a lot of ignorance and fear around HIV. When people have all the facts, there's no need to be freaked out," he said.
