World at HIV/AIDS stalemate - expert

A top researcher said this week that the global battle against HIV/AIDS would not be won without strengthened efforts on all fronts. Doctor Robert Gallo, who co-discovered that HIV causes AIDS, warned that the pandemic would be a problem for generations to come, unless it was tackled with education and increased treatment availability. The Miami Herald quoted Gallo as saying: "We're often asked to compare AIDS to the great epidemics of the past, like the plague or influenza. These conventional viruses came swiftly and went swiftly, like a great tornado ... [but] AIDS is like a chronic thunderstorm that won't go away." He said mankind and its scientists were currently at a stalemate with the pandemic, winning some battles and losing others.