New photo Woman who thought she had cancer reveals the moment she found out she had HIV

Cath Smith can vividly recall the moment she found out she had contracted HIV - eight months after having sex with a man who carried the disease.

'My first thought was, '"I'm going to die",' she told FEMAIL about the moment she was diagnosed with a disease she associated with suffering and the rapid onset of AIDS. 

'Then I thought I was going to look like an AIDS victim – and then I realised 'oh no, I haven't even had the chance to have children yet'.' 

But having now lived with the virus for more than a decade, the 47-year-old from rural Victoria retains the energy and drive to spearhead a campaign to prevent other women experiencing the same fate.

Cath Smith once thought her HIV diagnosis meant imminent death and a life marred by the effects of the disease 

The reality of living with HIV today was nothing like the early years of the disease, when it rapidly led to AIDS and a harrowing death. 

It was the time of famous Grim Reaper TV advertisements which did a good job of making Australians aware of the seriousness of the disease but which reinforced the long-lasting impression that HIV meant imminent death.

'For nearly 40 years we have lived with HIV stigma and despite that for over two decades, HIV treatments have been effective in suppressing the virus,' she said. 

'My first thought was, 'oh f*** I'm going to die,' she told FEMAIL about the moment she was diagnosed, eight months after being infected with HIV 

In the decade since she contracted the virus, the 47-year-old from rural Victoria has taken her fight nationwide in a bid to avoid other women suffering the same fate

Years later, she now takes just one pill each day which ensures she has 'zero chance' of passing on HIV

Cath takes just one pill each day which ensures she has 'zero chance' of passing on HIV.  

However, the updated medications are not without their drawbacks. 

'We don't know what the long term side-effects of the medications are going to be, because no one has been on them long enough,' Cath said.   

Another significant improvement in the fight against HIV and AIDS has been a decline in the number of gay and bisexual men - who make up the majority of cases - contracting the disease.

The rate of infections in that demographic fell by 11 per cent over the past decade but the number of heterosexual people with the virus remains stubbornly unchanged. 

According to Positive Women, the only community based organisation specifically funded to support women living with HIV in Australia, the number of women living the virus has stagnated and is estimated to be at 3,350. 

'The reason women are being diagnosed later is because it's not until the man starts to get sick that they realise they may be at risk,' Cath said. 

While the rate of bisexual and gay men contracting HIV has plummeted by 11 per cent over the past decade - the number of heterosexual people with the virus remains unchanged

Many were also under the impression that the disease could not be contracted through vaginal sex, but that was exactly what led to Cath's case after meeting a man online while in her 30s. 

Cath's allergy to latex meant the pair didn't use condoms during their sexual encounters, which meant the odds of transmission were compounded. 

'After I contracted it, I had to realise that there was a potential risk - and ultimately I decided to take it anyway,' she said

'When I look back (on the relationship) I think he was quite unwell (with HIV) the whole time we were together.' 

After self-described 'vaginal wall trauma' during sex, Cath is believed to have been unknowingly infected by her male partner.

After self-described 'vaginal wall trauma' during sex in August 2007, Cath is believed to have been unknowingly infected by her male partner

'Within two weeks it felt like my eyeballs were going to explode,' she said. 

'I thought I had cancer, I was so exhausted - but I'd been struggling before this with depression and exhaustion was a part of that.' 

What followed were night sweats, and 'golf ball-sized' lumps on her neck and exhaustion - all signs of seroconverting, what happens when the body initially tries to fight HIV as it starts to take hold. 

But it wasn't until she donated blood months later when HIV was picked up through a routine screening.

And while the virus' effects are serious and ever-present, Cath has since realised its stigma is far more wide-reaching.

Through her advocacy work, Cath is now aiming to ensure the virus' mark is something future Australian woman will not have to endure. 

'I'm angry about what the stigma has done to my life,' she said.

Ultimately the desire to end that social stigma was a major motivation - desire to end the social stigma that was a major motivation to go public with her illness in an effort to help others. 

While the virus' effects are serious and ever-present, Cath has since realised its stigma is far more wide-reaching, something she is aiming no other Australian woman has will to endure

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News Pictures Woman who thought she had cancer reveals the moment she found out she had HIV

You don’t have to pack away your bikini just because you’re the wrong side of 20. These body-beautiful stars reveal their secrets to staying in shape and prove you can smoulder in a two-piece, whatever your age. Read on and be bikini inspired!

TEENS
Hayden Panettiere
Size: 8
Age: 18
Height: 5ft 1in
Weight: 8st

To achieve her kick-ass figure, Hayden – who plays cheerleader Claire Bennet in Heroes – follows the ‘quartering’ rule. She eats only a quarter of the food on her plate, then waits 20 minutes before deciding whether she needs to eat again.

Hayden says: “I don’t have a model’s body, but I’m not one of those crazy girls who thinks that they’re fat. I’m OK with what I have.”

Nicollette says: “I don’t like diets – I see it, I eat it! I believe in eating healthily with lots of protein, vegetables and carbs to give you energy.”

kim cattrall

Size: 10-12
Age: 52
Height: 5ft 8in
Weight: 9st 4lb

SATC star Kim swears by gym sessions with Russian kettle bells (traditional cast-iron weights) and the South Beach Diet to give her the body she wants. To avoid overeating, Kim has a radical diet trick – squirting lemon juice on her leftovers – so she won’t carry on picking.

Kim says: “I am no super-thin Hollywood actress. I am built for men who like women to look like women.”
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