艾滋病治愈良药需要更多投资

More investment is needed to find a cure for HIV, the new head of the International Aids Society has said.

国际艾滋病协会新会长称，想要找到艾滋病的至于良方需要更多的投资。

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HIV finds ways to elude the body's immune system
Bertrand Audoin admits this might take as long as 25 years, but he says a cure is the only way to keep ahead of the HIV epidemic² in the long term during tough financial times.

Sunday sees the 30th anniversary of the first medical reports of a new illness.

Some experts have warned that talk of a cure could lead to false hopes, and developing a vaccine³ would be better.

Mr Audoin said: "It is the right moment - from the scientific and financial point of view - to invest more time and money in researching a cure.

"There is already some basic science in this area. We know that some people who are on HIV treatment can contain the virus in a way which makes them unable to infect other people.

"So we think further work could help us develop a functional⁴ cure, which would allow the virus to remain latent in the body, without people feeling sick or needing treatment. That's the goal."

Fast epidemic

Mr Audoin ran a French Aids organisation⁵ called Sidaction, before heading the IAS - an organisation of 18,000 health professionals and activists⁶.

He said: "At the moment, for every one person beginning treatment in badly affected⁷ countries in Africa, two people get infected with HIV in that time.

"So treatment with anti-retroviral drugs isn't the only solution in the long run.

"It could take 25 years before we find a cure - and the hardest part will be convincing donor⁸ governments and other funding organisations to put money into research.

"But if we don't invest in the science, the epidemic will go faster than our work on it - and the financial situation will make it more difficult to put people on treatment."