HIV Causes AIDS. to Argue Otherwise Costs Lives
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HIV causes AIDS. To argue otherwise costs lives. As scientists and clinicians concerned about the HIV/AIDS pandemic, we have purchased this advertising space to counter the fallacious arguments of a few colleagues who claim that the cause of AIDS is in doubt. There is no such scientific controversy. The cause of AIDS is as well established as the causes of polio, measles, influenza, or any other viral disease. HIV infection correlates with AIDS. More than 95% of people infected with HIV die of AIDS within 15 years after infection, unless they are treated. The AIDS epidemic in people — men, women, children — is associated only with HIV infection. AIDS is not uniformly associated with membership in any particular “risk” group. Early in the epidemic, recipients of blood products, especially people with hemophilia, were at high risk of AIDS. Where HIV has been eliminated from the blood supply, new cases of transfusion-associated AIDS have not occurred. Furthermore, in countries where rates of HIV infection have increased, AIDS deaths have risen along with cases of AIDS. Similar viruses cause AIDS in animals. A virus very similar to HIV, SIV, causes AIDS in rhesus monkeys. Pure SIV DNA can initiate infection leading to AIDS, excluding any other possible causes for the disease in monkeys. Treatment of HIV infection treats AIDS. If patients sick with AIDS are treated with drugs that greatly reduce the amount of HIV in their blood, their health can improve dramatically, and they often return to normal, productive lives. Such drugs also prevent or delay the onset of AIDS. If the drug treatment is stopped or fails, the virus returns, as does the disease. Unfortunately, we do not yet know how to suppress the vi rus completely or permanently nor how to make the drug therapies accessible enough and inexpensive enough for wide distribution in developing countries where AIDS is most prevalent. This message is appearing on the occasion of the 13th International AIDS Conference, which opens today in Durban, South Africa. A few days ago, a statement known as the Durban Declaration was released. The Declaration calls on scientists, health care workers, and political leaders worldwide to do all they can to stop the spread of this deadly virus. We fully support the principles presented in the Declaration, and we applaud the scientific leaders of South Africa and other countries who have recorded their support. As noted in the Declaration, over 2.8 million people worldwide died of AIDS last year, and about 34.3 million people are currently infected with HIV. Without dramatic progress in HIV research, nearly all of those 34 million will die of AIDS within the next 15 years. Today, the only certain way to avoid AIDS is not to become infected with HIV. The continuing global fight against AIDS must be founded on the knowledge we now have about its cause; on the tools now available to prevent and treat infections; and on research to develop vaccines and improved drugs to prevent and treat future HIV infections. Those who exploit their reputations as scientists to propagate unfounded alternative claims regarding the cause of AIDS are contributing to the growth of the epidemic and to the death of human beings. Such claims must be exposed and contradicted at every opportunity, and we offer this statement in that spirit. Signed, ORGANIZING COMMITTEE MEMBERS Bruce Alberts, Ph.D., Art Ammann, M.D., David Baltimore, Ph.D., California Institute of Technology, Paul Berg, Stanford University School of Medicine, J. Michael Bishop, University of California, San Fransisco, Janet S. Butel, Ph.D., Baylor College of Medicine, Charles Carpenter, M.D., Irvin S.Y. Chen, M.D., UCLA AIDS Institute, John Coffin, Ph.D., Tufts University, Francis S. Collins, M.D., Ph.D., Louis S. Diamond, Ph.D., Scientist Emeritus, NIH, Anthony Fauci, M.D., Gerald R. Fink, Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research/MIT, Robert C. Gallo, Institute of Human Virology(Baltimore), Stephen P. Goff, Ph.D., Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, Huldrych Gunthard, M.D., University Hospital Zurich, David D. Ho, MD, Aaron Diamond AIDS Research Center, King K. Holmes, M.D., Ph.D., University of Washington, Peter M. Howley, M.D., Harvard Medical School, Steve Hughes, Eric Hunter, Ph.D., Center for AIDS Research/University of Alabama, Birmingham, Clyde A. Hutchinson III, University of North Carolina, Thomas J. Kelly, Johns Hopkins University, Peter Kim, Ph.D., Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research/MIT, Mathilde Krim, Ph.D., Columbia University School of Public Health and amfAR, Jeffrey Laurence, M.D., New York Weill Cornel Medical Center and amfAR, Michael Lederman, M.D., AIDS Clinical Trials Unit, Cleveland, OH, Arnold J. Levine Ph.D., The Rockefeller University, Jay A. Levy, M.D., University of California, San Fransisco, Kenneth H. Mayer, M.D., Memorial Hospital and Brown University, John W. Mellors, M.D., University of Pittsburgh, Jayashree Seems Nandi, National Institute of Virology (Baltimore), Neal Nathanson, M.D., Arthur Nienhuis, Douglas Richman, M.D., University of California, San Diego and San Diego VA Medical Center, Robert T. Schooley, M.D., University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, Thomas Shenk, Princeton University, Joseph G. Sodroski, M.D., Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Bruce Stillman, Jonathan Stoye, National Institute for Medical Research (UK), Ron Swanstrom, George Vande Woude, Van Andel Research Institute, Harold Varmus, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, Mark A. Wainberg, International AIDS Society /McGill University AIDS Center (Canada), Robin Weiss, University College, London (UK), Don C. Wiley, Harvard University, Steven M. Wolinsky, M.D., Northwestern University Medical School, Flossie Wong-Staal, Ph.D., University of California, San Diego, John Young, University of Wisconsin. Rafi Ahmed, Ph.D., Emory University School of Medicine, Chris Aiken, Vanderbilt University, Anna Aldovini, Children's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Jon Allan, Karla Alwood, CRNP, Johns Hopkins University, Warren A. Andiman, Yale University School of Medicine, Peter Angeletti, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Aftab A. Ansari, Emory University School of Medicine, Peter Anton, M.D., UCLA AIDS Institute, Peter Arno, Montefiore Medical Center (New York), Edward Arnold, Rutgers University, Gail Ferstandig Arnold, Rutgers University, Paul Arons, Florida Department of Health, Larry Arthur, Lisa M. Austin, Ph.D., The Rockefeller University, Scott Austin, Columbia University, Mariano Barbacid, Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Oncologicas Carlos III, Patricia Barditch-Crovo, M.D., Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Mary D. Barkley, Case Western Reserve University, Françoise Barré-Sinoussi, Pasteur Institute (France), Peter A. Barry, Ph.D., University of California, Davis, Michael Barza, M.D., Carney Hospital, Boston, Roger N. Beachy, Karen Beemon, Johns Hopkins University, Marlene Belfort, New York State Department of Health, Baruj Benacerraf, M.D., Shelley L. Berger, Ph.D., The Wistar Institute, Ben Berkhout, University of Amsterdam(The Netherlands), Ernest Beutler, M.D., The Scripps Research Institute, Barbara K. Birshtein, Ph.D., Albert Einstein College of Medicine (NY), Robert Blumenthal, Ph.D., Jef D. Boeke, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Elizabeth Bonney, Emory University School of Medicine, Charles Boucher, University of Utrecht (The Netherlands), Mike Bray, U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases, Elizabeth Crabb Breen, Ph.D., UCLA School of Medicine, Christopher C. Broder, Ph.D., Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Amanda M. Brown, Ph.D., Aaron Diamond AIDS Research Center, Don Brown, Carnegie Institution of Washington (D.C.), Robert C. Brunham, University of British Columbia Center For Disease Control (Canada), R. Mark L. Buller, St. Louis University, Paul Thadeus Burak, Harold Burger, Ph.D., M.D., New York State Department of Health, Dennis Burton, Ph.D., The Scripps Research Institute, Frederic Bushman, The Salk Institute, Kathryn Calame, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, David Camerini, Myles H. Thaler Center for AIDS and Human Retrovirus Research, University of Virginia, Allan Campbell, Stanford University, Andrew G. Campbell, Brown University, Mario Capecchi, University of Utah, Victoria Cargill, M.D., M.S.C.E., Marian Carlson, Columbia University, Mary Carrington, Ph.D., Carol Carter, Stony Brook, NY, Connie Celum, M.D., M.P.H., Harborview Medical Center University of Washington, Lisa A. Chakrabarti, Ph.D., Aaron Diamond AIDS Research Center, Sarah H. Cheeseman, M.D., University of Massachusetts Health Care, Cecilia Cheng-Mayer, Aaron Diamond AIDS Research Center, Frank V. Chisari, M.D., The Scripps Research Institute, Dr. Christina Clarke, Northern California Cancer Center, Janice E. Clements, Ph.D., Johns Hopkins University Medical School, David B. Clifford, M.D., Washington University School of Medicine St. Louis, Ann Collier, M.D., AIDS Clinical Trials Unit, University of Washington, Medical School, R. John Collier, Harvard Medical School, Ron Collman, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Kathleen Conklin, Ph.D., University of Minnesota, Elizabeth Connick, M.D., University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, Larry Corey, University of Washington, Suzanne Cory, The Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research (Australia), Deborah Cotton M.D., M.P.H., Boston University, Donald L. Court, Robert Craigie, Keith A. Crandall, Brigham Young University, Clyde Crumpacker