Journal of the International AIDS Society Blog

World AIDS Vaccine Day – 18 May 2010

Today 18 May is World AIDS Vaccine Day, also known as HIV Vaccine Awareness Day.  Advocates the world over have been celebrating it since 1998, the first anniversary of then-President Bill Clinton’s commencement speech at Morgan State University in Baltimore, Maryland, during which he challenged scientists to “develop an AIDS vaccine within [a] decade”.

There is still no known vaccine to prevent HIV infection and the progression towards AIDS. Research into an HIV vaccine continues to this day. To learn more about vaccines, please visit the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI) website .

18 May has become an opportunity across continents to raise awareness about HIV vaccines, promote scientific research, dispel commonly-held myths and encourage people to get tested.

Today an estimated 33.4 million people are living with HIV, two thirds in sub-Saharan Africa. Every day over 7’000 people worldwide are getting infected with HIV.

To test your knowledge on HIV vaccines, take this quiz.

To learn about ongoing HIV prevention trials around the world visit AVAC – Global Advocacy for HIV Prevention.

Posted by Rose-Marie Neuenschwander at 12:05    Comments (0)