Bug chasing: Men deliberately trying to catch HIV for sexual thrill in astonishing craze

Chase: Nick had sex with 1,000 men
Experts have warned about a new craze in
which men are secretly seeking and
spreading HIV.
The reckless practice, known as bug
chasing, started in the US as a bizarre
means of getting a sexual high from risk-
taking.
Now, according to one man who willingly
caught the virus, hundreds of men in the
UK are introducing themselves on online
forums, Facebook groups and Twitter.
Many then meet up and try to transmit the
potentially life-threatening virus, which
attacks the immune system weakening the
body’s ability to fight disease.
Some bug-chasers actually claim the virus
gives them a better quality of life because
of the medication they subsequently have
to take.
Nick, 30, an admin worker from the
Midlands, said: “I feel fit as a fiddle. I feel
full of energy and healthier as a result of
being on my medication.
“I get my liver function tests every three
months, my cholesterol tested regularly
and I get loads of general health checks so
if there are any underlying conditions I
know straight away. Even better, I get it all
on the NHS.”
Last year, 73,659 people in the UK were
treated for HIV – 43 per cent of them gay or
bisexual men – a rise of 58 per cent over
the last 10 years.
In 2012, the NHS spent £840million on HIV
treatment, an average £10,000 per patient.
Simon Prytherch, of the Elton John Aids
Foundation, said: “This practice is very scary
and highly irresponsible.
“What we see increasingly are cases of
treatment failure and then rapid decline in
health.”
Bug chasing is so new to the UK it is
impossible to say how many men are
involved.
In the US, where the phenomenon was first
identified in 1999, research is further
advanced.
An investigation by Rolling Stone magazine
in 2003 claimed a quarter of all new HIV
transmissions in the US could be attributed
to bug chasing.
No such studies have been done in the UK
but one Facebook group dedicated to the
practice has been “liked” by 1,172 people.
A US website which promotes meetings of
bug-chasers and gift-givers – those who
are already HIV positive – has more than
5,000 members.
Nick, who contracted HIV in 2011, joined
the site two years ago.
He claims he has had unprotected sex with
more than 1,000 men, including many he
knew were HIV positive, in his quest for the
virus.
When Nick was first diagnosed, he wrote on
Facebook: “Tested positive on 21st
September and totally loving it! Wanna
share with any chasers, CD4 is 971, VL
100,000 – nice and toxic!”
CD4 refers to his white blood cell count
while VL is the “viral load”, which indicates
how likely a carrier is to pass the virus on.
VL 100,000 is extremely high.
“I don’t regret the sex I had or becoming
HIV. The only downside of contracting the
virus is it took some of the excitement
away.”
Since his diagnosis, Nick claims to have had
unprotected sex with 20 men.
“I have faced a lot of vitriol on my blog,” he
said. “But I just think that as it’s between
two consenting adults, it’s no one else’s
business.
“If you brought me a person I had infected
and sat them in front of me I would
probably feel some guilt over it if they
hadn’t been educated about the risks. But
all the people I have had sex with have
made educated decisions.”
Silvia Petretti, of HIV charity Positively UK,
has been living with the virus for 16 years.
She said: “It may not be a death sentence
any more but living with HIV is not a walk
in the park either.
“It makes me very sad and very worried that
people are seeking to contract it.
“Bug chasing needs to be addressed, both
by the NHS and the education system, so
that people are aware of the risks from a
young age and receive the help they need if
they are feeling compelled to act this way.”
The Terence Higgins Trust said: “Although it
is a tiny minority taking part, we
recommend that gay and bisexual men
protect themselves against HIV and other
sexually-transmitted infections by using
condoms.”
Nick is not his real name.
Read more: Mirror News