Treasure Island Media porn star, Cam Christou, proudly takes Truvada daily

By Brian Webb of Homoculture.ca

“I first heard about PrEP when I want in to get PEP. My ex-boyfriend was HIV positive and the condom broke,” said gay porn star, Cam Christou. It was the solution that Cam, like so many others, was looking for in an effort to help reduce the risk of getting HIV.

Cam has been taking pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), for two years. It was his health care provider that he learned about PrEP, known by the brand name, Truvada, as an effective method to reduce his risk of HIV by up to 99% when taken every single day.

“At first, I did it for him, not necessarily myself,” said Cam Christou, who explains why he chose to start taking PrEP on a daily basis. “He was healthy, on medicine, and his viral load count was low. I was involved in the local HIV/AIDS health clinic in Washington, D.C., and I was comfortable having sex with him, even with using a condom.”

For Cam Christou and his long-term partner at the time, practicing safer sex was important, especially because his partner was HIV positive.

“My first serious boyfriend were going hard at it when he found out his was HIV positive,” Cam Christou said. “It was my first exposure to HIV in my life. He kept begging me not to leave him. I took a vow. It took me 15-20 minutes to think about it. I wouldn’t want anyone to leave me, break up with me, or place a stigma because of something that is out of my control. My view of HIV changed at that point and I never viewed HIV as a stigma.”

For years, HIV has had a very negative stigma. With the growing usage of HIV negative people opting to take PrEP, they are also facing sigma’s of their own.

“We’ve come so far with this amazing drug, but it’s still a long, long road ahead,” says Cam Christou. “There is an automatic assumption that I’m having unprotected sex. People only focus that [Truvada] only prevents HIV. Hepatitis still has a huge impact, just like becoming HIV positive later down the road; other things people don’t think about, and stuff that condoms do prevent. Yeah, you’re on Truvada, but you still need to be careful.”

“It’s an opportunity to have open dialogue with former and current lovers, and people having sex. Surprisingly, people know nothing about it. The thing I like about Truvada, is that although there is a mask out there that it increases promiscuity, it doesn’t. Either I’m going to have protected or unprotected sex. Either way, I have something to fall back on. I talk to my family members about it, especially the ones who attribute being gay with automatically getting HIV. You have to be careful. This opens doors for education ad to change the stigma out there.

With the medicines out there and how far things have advanced, it hasn’t made me scared of becoming HIV positive.”

While Cam Christou’s initial reason for wanting to take Truvada was personally motivated because of his relationship with someone who is HIV positive, it has also come in handy in his work life as a porn star.

Cam Christou started working in the adult entertainment industry 1.5 years ago. His is a model at Treasure Island Media, a porn company well known for producing bareback porn featuring both HIV positive and HIV negative models.

“It started out as a bucket list thing and then it turned into me enjoying stepping into a different skin, in different shoes,” said Chris Christou, explaining why he got into the adult entertainment industry. “I’ve taken a back seat to filming right now to take a little break.”

In the porn industry, bareback sex is a big issue, especially with the bigger studios. It’s more attractive to audiences than condom sex.

“As a performer, it’s easier,” says Christou. “Condoms just suck. You go through ten condoms when filming a scene, and they hurt if you’re hairy. I think [Truvada] is making it comfortable for HIV negative performers to perform with HIV positive models.”

There is a desire from Christou, Max Cameron, and other adult entertainment models for porn companies to talk more openly and educate others about the use of Truvada. Most studios haven’t been public about their position; however, recently Mr Pam, director at NakedSword.com spoke out about the use of Truvada in the gay porn industry.

While Truvada is one method of safer sex, it’s not for everyone and it’s not the end-all, be-all solution.

“Get tested and talk to each other,” is the safer-sex advice Cam Christou wants everyone to know. “It baffles me that you wouldn’t know what your HIV status is. The #1 safer-sex tool is to know everything about yourself and know everything about each other.”

The average, moderately sexually active person should be getting tested every three months. People who are higher risk should get tested monthly. Not all STI’s have symptoms, and without being tested you could pass along something to an unsuspecting partner. Getting tested is quick, easy and responsible.

When it comes to taking Truvada as an additional layer of protection against HIV, Cam Christou is a big supporter.

“I recommend you speak with your health care provider first,” suggested Cam Christou. “You have to be educated on Truvada. There are a large number of medical professionals who don’t know who should be on PrEP, who shouldn’t be, and details about it. It’s dangerous if you are HIV positive already. You also have to have good kidney and liver function.”

Being open and honest is critical. You should never be scared to get tested to tell your partner your true HIV status. Truvada is one of many safer-sex methods, and can be an important back-up tool for some individuals.

“I definitely encountered more bareback partners while on PrEP, but I’m still picky about who I have sex with,” says Cam Christou. “It really hasn’t changed how many people I have bareback sex with, but I have seen a number of increased options.”

Truvada isn’t suitable for everyone. If you are interested in Truvada as an additional layer of protection in your toolkit to prevent HIV, speak with your health care professional. Truvada was approved for use as PrEP in July 2012, endorsed by both the FDA and the CDC, and in 2014 was a recommended strategy method to prevent HIV by the World Health Organization. Truvada is not approved in Canada for use as PrEP, however, there are studies underway in both Toronto and Montreal. Truvada is being prescribed in Canada off-label by some health care professionals for people who are at high risk.

– See more at: http://www.homoculture.ca/2014/11/15/treasure-island-media-porn-star-cam-christou-proudly-takes-truvada-daily/#sthash.XVNgOerq.dpuf