Sports fans will never forget the day in 1991 when L.A. Lakers star Earvin "Magic" Johnson announced that he was infected with HIV. Johnson was lucky; he survived long enough to see the advent of the first effective AIDS drugs. But not everyone was so lucky.
HIV/AIDS
Sometimes groups or individuals propose breaking the patent on an important drug because it's too expensive. This is not the right way to hold down drug prices, because it will hold down innovation. Breaking a patent is theft, no matter how you look at it.
Two decades ago Africa seemed like a lost cause. AIDS was unrelentingly decimating the continent and there was little cause for optimism. But life could not be more different now. Thanks to the discovery and distribution of new, powerful drugs, the tide is turning, with Kenya predicted to be AIDS-free by 2030. It's a medical miracle.
If you remember 1982, at that time AIDS was a death sentence – and a gruesome one at that. But a recent Lancet paper shows how far we've come. And the difference between what Randy Shilts describes in his book and today is nothing short of miraculous.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released its annual Sexually Transmitted Disease Surveillance Report, which reflects record highs in primary and secondary syphilis, gonorrhea and chlamydia.
Antiretroviral drugs have had a profound effect on AIDS, however, long-term toxicity of the drugs can be a problem. Fortunately, efforts to discover different classes of AIDS drugs have been successful. The different classes are possible because of knowledge about the life cycle of HIV. Here is a simplified explanation of how this works.
On the heels of a defeated attempt to overturn a vaccination law, California delivers another victory for public health: a sex education law, which mandates comprehensive, science-based instruction for all teens. It includes important topics like consent, sexual orientation and HIV/AIDS awareness, and the important basics like contraception.
The World Health Organization is changing its tune on treatment for HIV, for the better. It now says that those diagnosed with HIV should be treated immediately. This may sound like a no-brainer, but treatment was formerly withheld and for good reason.
Six years after Washington, D.C. health officials delivered a bleak and morbid update about the city's growing HIV-AIDS population, a new study reveals that its needle-exchange program is saving lives and millions of dollars in healthcare costs.
A recent study shows that early treatment for HIV results in a significant decrease in early illness and death. "It's just more scientific evidence to back what we've been saying for a time now," said Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health which funded the
In what is being hailed by some as a historic decision, the FDA has decided to change its recommendations for blood donations from gay and bisexual men. In 1983, during the height of the AIDS crisis, the FDA
For all those in science, educating people is a major part of the job. Whether its a professor teaching students in a classroom, a physician teaching a patient about a procedure, or a non-profit, like ACSH teaching consumers the difference between good and junk science, the work of those in the sciences should always be characterized by teaching in some form. When this system breaks down and the