Almost 30 years after the first death from AIDS, we are still waiting for a cure. But fewer people are being infected thanks to campaigns such as the United Nations World AIDS Day, that help people to recognise the risks and symptoms of AIDS earlier.
But much remains to be done:
- Every 77 minutes, somebody in the UK is diagnosed with AIDS.
- 33.4 million people live with HIV/AIDS worldwide
- 12 million children have been orphaned as a result of HIV/AIDS
- There were 2.7 million new HIV/AIDS infections in 2009
- There were 2 million AIDS-related deaths in 2009
- One in four HIV/AIDS patients have neurological diseases
There is still no vaccine against AIDS. There is still no cure for AIDS.
First cases of AIDS
The first cases of AIDS were reported in the summer of 1981. A number of gay men in New York and California began developing rare infections and cancers that seemed resistant to all treatment. AIDS did not yet have its name, but it was soon obvious that all the men were suffering from a common syndrome.
Five months later, in December 1981, it was clear that the disease was affecting other population groups. The first cases were reported in intravenous drug users. In the same month, the first case of AIDS was documented in the UK.
In December 1982, a 20-month old child who had received multiple blood transfusions died from AIDS-related infections. By the end of the year, it was clear that an even wider group of people was going to be affected.
In January 1983, reports of AIDS among women with no other risk factors suggested the disease might be passed on through heterosexuals. By the end of the year, the number of AIDS cases in the USA had risen to 3,064. Of these 1,292 had died.
AIDS vaccine
On April 23rd, 1984, United States Health and Human Services Secretary, Margaret Heckler, announced that the isolation of the virus that caused AIDS, that it was named HTLV-III, and that there would soon be a test available to detect the virus.
She also optimistically announced "We hope to have a vaccine [against AIDS] ready for testing in about two years."
AIDS awareness was dramatically brought to the wider public's attention on October 2nd 1985, when popular film star Rock Hudson died of AIDS. Public confidence was further rocked when another household name, pianist Liberace, died of AIDS on February 4, 1987.
UK HIV AIDS statistics
As reported by the Terrence Higgins Trust last week, HIV remains one of the fastest growing, serious health risks in the UK. These statistics are taken from the Health Protection Agency:
- 86,500 people in the UK are living with HIV
- 26% of these people do not even know they have the disease
- Almost 20,000 have died from AIDS in the UK
- 6,630 new cases were diagnosed on 2009 alone
- 52% of these new cases were diagnosed late
30 years into the HIV/AIDS crisis
But much more has to be achieved, as the Secretary General said this week.
“Three decades into this crisis, let us set our sights on achieving the “three zeros” -- zero new HIV infections, zero discrimination and zero AIDS-related deaths. On this World AIDS Day, let us pledge to work together to realize this vision for all of the world’s people.”
John Griffin - I enjoy football, listening to music, watching films and playing football management video games. I read a little bit of everything. I'm a ...
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