WATCH: PrEP and the Need to Stop Treating Trans Women as Men Who Have Sex With Men

A principal investigator on one of the most pivotal studies about PrEP says trans women are being overlooked by researchers on this and other issues related to HIV.

In this interview, Dr. Bob Grant, a principal investigator of the iPrEx study -- the groundbreaking study on PrEP -- talks with the director of the Bay Area Perinatal AIDS Center, Shannon Weber, about the use of PrEP for transgender women. Grant explains that 13 percent of the participants were trans women, but more studies are necessary to investigate the needs of trans women specifically.

Grant says that although he had felt strongly about including trans women in the PrEP study because he didn't think a completely separate study on trans women would get funding, future studies should end the practice of erroneously grouping trans women in with "men who have sex with men."

He also calls for involvement of trans women as investigators in future studies. "This is really essential," he says. "We need trans women to be investigators of studies and to be involved in development of protocols."

Watch the whole interview below: