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* WHO recommendation means 37 million should be on treatment
* Early use of drugs extends lives, protects partners
* MSF welcomes move but warns costs will soar (Adds details on costs)
By Stephanie Nebehay
GENEVA, Sept 30 (Reuters) - Everyone with HIV should begiven anti-retroviral drugs as soon as possible after diagnosis,meaning 37 million people worldwide should be on treatment, theWorld Health Organization (WHO) said on Wednesday.
Recent clinical trials have confirmed that early drug useextends the lives of those with the AIDS-causing virus and cutsthe risk of disease transmission to partners, the WHO said in astatement setting out the new goal for its 194 member states.
Under previous WHO guidelines, which limited treatment tothose whose immune cell counts had fallen below a certainthreshold, 28 million people were deemed eligible foranti-retroviral therapy (ART).
All people at "substantial" risk of contracting HIV shouldalso be given preventive ART, not just men who have sex withmen, the WHO said.
The new guidelines are a central plank of the United Nationsagency's aim to end the AIDS epidemic by 2030.
"Everybody living with HIV has the right to life-savingtreatment. The new guidelines are a very important step towardsensuring that all people living with HIV have immediate accessto anti-retroviral treatment," said Michel Sidibe, executivedirector of UNAIDS.
"According to UNAIDS estimates, expanding ART to all peopleliving with HIV and expanding prevention choices can help avert21 million AIDS-related deaths and 28 million new infections by2030."
The move will lead to a sharp increase in demand for ARTmedicines, which are typically given as a three-drug cocktail toavoid the risk of the virus developing resistance.
Major suppliers of HIV drugs include Gilead Sciences, ViiV Healthcare, which is majority-owned byGlaxoSmithKline, and multiple Indian genericmanufacturers.
The medical charity Medecins Sans Frontieres (DoctorsWithout Borders) welcomed the WHO's "treat-all" plan, which itbelieves will prevent many HIV-positive people in poorercountries from falling through the treatment net.
MSF said its experience showed that a third of people whowere diagnosed with HIV, but not eligible to start treatment,never returned to the clinic.
The charity also warned that making the new recommendation areality would require dramatically increased financial supportfrom donors and governments.
The WHO estimates that by 2020 low- and lower-middle incomecountries will need $18.4 billion annually for the expanded HIVfight. However, fast-tracking the response should yield economicreturns of $15 per dollar invested, based on improved health andinfections averted.
Since it began spreading 30 years ago, AIDS has killedaround 40 million people worldwide. (Additional reporting by Ben Hirschler in London; editing byTom Heneghan and Jason Neely)
