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AIDS Turns 30; Will There Ever Be a Vaccine?

By Taunya English / NewsWorks

Add Comment | Comments: 0 | Posted Jun. 3, 2011

In June 1981, disease detectives at the CDC published the first description of a pneumonia-like illness afflicting five Los Angeles men. The syndrome was later called AIDS. AIDS turns 30 this month, and its death toll in the United States has passed 600,000.

Some are asking: Why don't we have an HIV vaccine yet?

Put aside for a moment debates about money, politics and sexual behavior that complicate the challenge to protect people from HIV. Instead consider the complexity of the virus itself.

Remember: The abbreviation stands for Human Immunodeficiency Virus.

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