AIDS education introduction

1981
	The New York Times publishes the first news article about the mysterious new disease
1982
	The Centres for Disease Control (CDC) establishes the term acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) and identifies four "risk factors": male homosexuality, intravenous drug use, Haitian origin, and hemophilia A.
1983
	A major outbreak of AIDS among both men and women in central Africa is reported. The CDC adds female sexual partners of men with AIDS to its list of "risk groups."
1984
	Scientists isolate a virus that causes an AIDS-like illness in monkeys.
1985
	AIDS has now been reported in 51 countries and on every continent except Antarctica
1986
	Calls made for a comprehensive program of sex and AIDS education and the widespread use of condoms. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) plans the formation of its AIDS Clinical Trials Group (ACTG). The first controlled efficacy trial of AZT is undertaken by the NIH. In West Africa, a second type of HIV, HIV-2, is discovered in commercial sex workers.
1987
	Approved in record time, zidovudine (AZT) becomes the first anti-HIV drug approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
1988
	In New York City, new AIDS cases resulting from shared needles exceed those attributable to sexual contact.Dr. Ruth Ruprecht receives an grant to test whether AZT can prevent mother-to-infant transmission of an HIV-like virus in monkeys
1989
	amfAR establishes a Community-Based Clinical Trials (CBCT) program
1990
	In Nairobi, Kenya, amfAR conducts its first international AIDS prevention workshop. To date, nearly twice as many Americans have died of AIDS as died in the Vietnam War
1991
	The CDC reports that one million Americans are infected with HIV. The red ribbon is introduced as a symbol of hope and compassion in the face of AIDS. Nearly 10 million people are infected with HIV worldwide. Freddy Mercury dies of AIDS.
1992
	The first clinical trial of combination antiretroviral therapy begins.
1993
	AIDS patients start to show signs of resistance to AZT. A three-year European study shows no evidence that AZT delays the onset of AIDS.
1994
	An NIH-funded trial demonstrates that AZT can reduce the risk of mother-to-infant HIV transmission in humans. Drs. David Ho and George Shaw show that following initial infection HIV replicates in the body continuously, producing billions of copies each day.
1995
	The New York Times reports that AIDS has become the leading cause of death among all Americans ages 25 to 44
1996
	The FDA approves the first non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (nevirapine), as well as a new viral load test that can measure the level of HIV in a patient's blood. Combination therapy is made available to HIV/AIDS patients for the first time, leading to a dramatic decline in AIDS-related deaths. Between 1992 and 1996, the number of mother-to-infant HIV transmissions drops by two-thirds, primarily as a result of treatment of HIV-infected mothers and their newborns with AZT.
1997
	AIDS patients continue to live longer thanks to the new anti-HIV therapies, dubbed drug "cocktails," and AIDS deaths in the U.S. decline by 42%. President Clinton calls for the development of an AIDS vaccine by 2007.
1998
	Early work by amfAR-funded researchers Drs. Joseph Sodroski and Richard Wyatt culminates in the first 3-D images of HIV as it attaches to the surface of immune cells. (Knowledge of this structure could be critical to designing an effective AIDS vaccine.)
1999
	In over 27 countries, the HIV infection rate has doubled since 1996. More than 95% of all HIV-infected people now live in the developing world, which has experienced 95% of AIDS deaths. In sub-Saharan Africa, the epicenter of the global epidemic, 55% of all HIV-positive adults are women. Scientists identify nevirapine as simpler, more effective, and cheaper than AZT for preventing mother-to-infant HIV transmission in developing countries.
2000
	The XIII International AIDS Conference in Durban, South Africa, focuses world attention on the exploding epidemic in sub-Saharan Africa, where millions of people with HIV/AIDS have little or no access to medical treatment.
2001
	Pharmaceutical companies withdraw their lawsuit to block implementation of a South African law that permits the import and manufacture of generic antiretrovirals. Nkosi Johnson dies of AIDS
2002
	The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria—a partnership between government, civil society, the private sector, and affected communities—is established. AIDS is the leading cause of death worldwide among people aged 15-59.
2003
	During his State of the Union address, President George W. Bush announces his Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), a five-year, $15 billion initiative to fight HIV/AIDS, primarily in Africa and the Caribbean.
2004
	A United Nations report warns of the growing AIDS crisis in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union. 15 million children worldwide have lost one or both parents to HIV/AIDS.
2005
	Nelson Mandela announces the death of his son from AIDS-related complications. World Health Organization and UNAIDS shows that the number of people on HIV antiretroviral treatment in developing countries has more than tripled since 2003 to 1.3 million and estimates that more than 40 million people are living with HIV worldwide.
2006
	28% of people in sub-Saharan Africa who need treatment for HIV are receiving it. Large studies of male circumcision reveal firm evidence that the procedure reduces the risk of HIV infection
2007
	Botswana has succeeded in cutting its mother-to-child transmission rate to under 4% - a rate comparable with the USA and Western Europe. The South African government adopts a comprehensive plan to tackle the country's epidemic, under the leadership of Deputy President Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka.
2008
	The UNAIDS annual report describes a stabilisation of most epidemics in sub-Saharan Africa. Around 2,925,000 people are recieving antiretroviral therapy in sub-Saharan Africa, an increase from 2,100,000 in 2007
2009
	Results are released from a circumcision trial in Uganda. The research shows circumcision of men living with HIV does not prevent transmission to their female partners
2010
	A large scale microbicide trial involving 900 South African women is found to reduce the risk of HIV acquisition by 39 percent.
2011
	The world's most ambitious HIV testing campaign in the world aims to counsel and test 15 million South Africans for HIV by June 2011