Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2002. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
BBC News - Monday, 2 December, 2002
The Eddystone Trust said the number of gay men with the virus has remained relatively stable.
But there has been a dramatic increase in the number of heterosexual people contracting the illness.
Mike Taylor, from the charity, said there is a degree of complacency among young people.
He said: "There is a sense that HIV was a previous generation's issue.
"They do not realise how prevalent HIV and other sexually-transmitted diseases are."
Events are being held across the region to mark World Aids Week.
A special service took place on Sunday evening at St Matthias church at Ilsham in Torquay.
And there will be a display in a small chapel of Exeter Cathedral to mark the occasion and a short remembrance on 7 December.
Exeter University's Safe Sex ball takes place on 2 December and will raise money for Positive Action South West, a south west HIV and AIDS charity of which pop idol Will Young is patron.
Elsewhere workshops are being held in Plymouth, Exeter and Torquay to focus on helping people understand how the HIV virus is spread.
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