Wainberg and his collaborators were the first to identify the antiviral capabilities of
3TC in 1989 and test the drug in patients. 3TC is also called
lamivudine. From 1998 to 2000, Wainberg was President of the
International AIDS Society. He was Co-Chair of the
XVI International AIDS Conference and a past president of the
Canadian Association for HIV Research. Wainberg founded the
Journal of the International AIDS Society in 2004, which he was still supporting as one of its three Editors-in-Chief. He was also an editor on publications including the
Journal of Human Virology,
Retrovirology, Journal of Leukocyte Biology,
International Antiviral News,
AIDS Patient Care and STDs,
Brazilian Journal of Infectious Diseases and
AIDS Research and Human Retroviruses. In 2001, he was made an Officer of the
Order of Canada, Canada's highest civilian honour, for his "major contributions to the study and treatment of" HIV/AIDS. In 2005, he was made an Officer of the
National Order of Quebec, an order of merit bestowed by the government of the Province of Quebec. In 2000, he was made a Fellow of the
Royal Society of Canada. In 2008, Wainberg was named a Chevalier de
Légion d'honneur, the highest honor given by the country of
France. In 2014, he was awarded the John G. Fitzgerald - CACMID Outstanding Microbiologist Award, which recognized him as "an individual who is outstanding in all aspects [and]... place him in a similar category to that of the individual the award is named after, Dr.
John G. FitzGerald." In 2016, he was inducted into the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame for his contributions to HIV/AIDS research. Wainberg was also a past president of Congregation
Tifereth Beth David Jerusalem. On September 30, 2024
McGill University and the
Montreal Jewish General Hospital established the Mark Wainberg Centre for Viral Diseases at McGill University in memory of the pioneering medical researcher. ==AIDS advocacy==