2006

Woman infected with HIV at Libya hospital dies: Reuters NewMedia - December 30, 2006; TRIPOLI - A Palestinian woman died of an AIDS-related illness at a Libyan hospital on Saturday, taking to 57 the number of victims of an HIV outbreak in the late 1990s blamed on six foreign medics, a local support group said. Maha Mahmood Shams, 18, died in hospital in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi, one-and-a-hal
Libya Condemns Foreign Pressure in HIV Case: Reuters NewMedia - December 29, 2006; TRIPOLI - Western criticism of death sentences handed to five Bulgarian nurses and a Palestinian doctor by a Libyan court shows a lack of respect for the Libyan people, Libya s foreign ministry said late on Thursday. The medics were sentenced last week for deliberately infecting 426 children in the late 1990s with the
Wrinkle filler could rival Medicis' Restylane: Reuters NewMedia - December 27, 2006; NEW YORK - The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved BioForm Medical Inc. s Radiesse cosmetic treatment for long-lasting correction of moderate to severe facial wrinkles, the company said in a press release on its Web site dated Wednesday. Privately-owned BioForm describes the drug as an injectable dermal fill
AIDS epidemic shifts, Vietnam makes policy change: Reuters NewMedia - December 25, 2006; Grant McCool; HANOI - A stocky woman in blue jeans with spiky, gelled black hair dances on stage at one of Vietnam s rural rehabilitation centres, leading a hip-hop style chant. Hold hands together, we ll stop AIDS together, shouted the former heroin addict patient who returned to the rehabilitation centre to encourage over a thousa
Circumcision could save money in AIDS-hit Africa: Reuters NewMedia - December 25, 2006; JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Male circumcision, which has been shown to decrease the chances of contracting HIV, could save billions of dollars in AIDS-hit Africa, a new study has shown. Circumcision has emerged as a new tool in the battle against AIDS following results in three African studies which showed it cuts the cha
Ugandan president rejects circumcision/HIV study: Reuters NewMedia - December 22, 2006; Tim Cocks; KAMPALA - Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni has condemned a new study showing that male circumcision reduces the risk of HIV infection during sex, saying it sent out a dangerous message. The state-owned New Vision paper on Friday quoted Museveni as saying there were many confusing messages about HIV/AIDS. One of them i
Indian Muslim women at ease in female-only hospital: Reuters NewMedia - December 22, 2006; Bappa Majumdar; KOLKATA, India - Hundreds of impoverished Muslim women are flocking to India s only all-female hospital in the eastern city of Kolkata to seek advice on family planning, preventing HIV/AIDS and other ailments. Conservative Muslim women are more comfortable discussing these issues in a female-only environment, doctors a
Circumcision may stop 1.4 mln South Africa HIV cases: Reuters NewMedia - December 21, 2006; JOHANNESBURG - Widespread male circumcision could prevent some 1.4 million new HIV infections and 800,000 AIDS deaths in South Africa over the next 20 years, a South African research group said on Thursday. The South African Center for Epidemiological Modeling and Analysis (SACEMA) said new studies showing circumcision
IMF warns Mozambique on mounting AIDS crisis: Reuters NewMedia - December 21, 2006; Charles Mangwiro; MAPUTO) - AIDS is emerging as a major threat to Mozambique s economic development and the government must work harder to combat the epidemic, an International Monetary Fund (IMF) official said on Thursday. HIV/AIDS is hindering development ... it s a major risk for a sustainable economy because capacities in this count
Indian state plans obligatory pre-marriage HIV test: Reuters NewMedia - December 20, 2006; HYDERABAD, India - India s Andhra Pradesh state, which has the country s largest number of HIV cases, is set to become the first to make it mandatory for couples to take a HIV test before marrying, officials said on Wednesday. Since condom use is not very popular, we are considering tough measures like HIV testing befo
UN rights office urges Libya not to execute medics: Reuters NewMedia - December 19, 2006; GENEVA - The United Nations human rights office on Tuesday called on Libyan authorities not to execute five Bulgarian nurses and a Palestinian doctor, saying it had concerns about the fairness of their trial on charges of deliberately infecting children with the deadly HIV virus. The circumstances surrounding the appli
Common acceptance underpins Kenya child sex trade: Reuters NewMedia - December 19, 2006; NAIROBI - Kenya s idyllic coastline of white sands and turquoise waters belies an alarming child sex industry, driven by widespread acceptance and even approval of the vice, a report said on Tuesday. Up to 15,000 girls in four coastal districts are involved in casual sex for cash -- about 30 percent of all 12-18 year-o
Theratechnologies jumps 70 pct on drug trial results: Reuters NewMedia - December 19, 2006; TORONTO - Theratechnologies Inc. s announcement on Tuesday of positive results in the Phase 3 clinical trial of its TH9507 drug, designed to treat the side effects of anti-HIV drug combinations, sent the stock up more than 70 percent in early trading. Shortly after the open, the company s shares surged C$2.00, or 72.7
U.N. Urges Circumcision in AIDS - Hit Southern Africa: Reuters NewMedia - December 19, 2006; NEW DELHI - AIDS-stricken Southern African nations should develop a policy of mass male circumcision to fight the disease, the head of the United Nations anti-AIDS agency said on Tuesday. Several recent medical studies have reported circumcision cuts the risk of HIV infection among men by 50-60 percent, and the finding
Foreign medics sentenced to die in Libya HIV case: Reuters NewMedia - December 19, 2006; Lamine Ghanmi; TRIPOLI - A Libyan court sentenced five Bulgarian nurses and a Palestinian doctor to death on Tuesday for deliberately infecting hundreds of children with the virus that causes AIDS, provoking a chorus of Western condemnation. The ruling, the latest episode in what experts say has been a deeply politicized case, could
Migrants carry HIV home in poor Indian state: Reuters NewMedia - December 18, 2006; Kamil Zaheer; PATNA, India - HIV-positive Santosh Srivastava s haunted eyes stare from his shrunken face as he talks about how much he regrets visiting prostitutes while working away from his home state. I just did not think about what I was doing, Srivastava, 48, told Reuters in Patna, capital of the impoverished state of Bihar in
Bulgarian nurses face new verdict in Libya HIV trial: Reuters NewMedia - December 16, 2006; Michael Winfrey; SOFIA - Snezhana Dimitrova, 54, said her Libyan jailors hung her from a doorway by her arms, hands tied behind her back until her shoulders came out of their sockets. Nasya Nenova, now 40, tried to kill herself in prison after she says she was tortured into confessing to deliberately injecting children with the deadly
Male circumcision greatly reduces HIV risk-studies: Reuters NewMedia - December 13, 2006; Will Dunham; WASHINGTON - Circumcising men cuts their risk of being infected with the AIDS virus in half, and could prevent hundreds of thousands or even millions of new infections, researchers said on Wednesday. Circumcising men worked so well that the researchers stopped two large clinical trials in Kenya and
India HIV cases may be lower than estimates: study: Reuters NewMedia - December 13, 2006; LONDON/NEW DELHI - The number of people living with HIV in India could be lower than government estimates, research published in a medical journal said, but the United Nations warned against drawing hasty conclusions . Scientists who studied the prevalence of the virus that causes AIDS in a district in the southern sta
South African health researchers get new hi-tech supertool: Reuters NewMedia - December 12, 2006; Sarah McGregor; JOHANNESBURG - Scientists in South Africa unveiled the country s most powerful weapon yet in their fight against AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis when they switched on a new supercomputer dedicated to scientific research this week. The supercomputer, which has been installed at the Council for Scientific and Industrial R
Indian pre-school kicks out HIV-positive boy: Reuters NewMedia - December 12, 2006; HYDERABAD, India - A four-year-old HIV-positive boy was asked to leave a nursery school in southern India after parents of other children complained, in the latest in a series of similar cases. Vamsikrishna s father, who used to sell toddy, a locally brewed alcoholic drink, died two years ago with AIDS.
South Africa uproar over call for president AIDS test: Reuters NewMedia - December 12, 2006; JOHANNESBURG - South Africa s deputy health minister on Tuesday denied calling upon President Thabo Mbeki to take a public AIDS test, but repeated that she believed it was important for national leaders to be tested. Nozizwe Madlala-Routledge, who recently became one of the few senior South African officials to publicl
Merck to seek U.S. approval of three drugs in 2007: Reuters NewMedia - December 12, 2006; Ransdell Pierson and Lewis Krauskopf; NEW YORK/WHITEHOUSE STATION, N.J. - Merck & Co. (MRK.N: Quote, Profile , Research) expects to seek U.S. approval in 2007 for drugs to treat HIV, cholesterol and insomnia, and aims to have another four products in late-stage trials by mid-year, the company said on Tuesday. The products due to be in late-stage trials
Drugs sold over the counter fuel HIV in India: Reuters NewMedia - December 11, 2006; NEW DELHI - India needs to tighten control on the sale of prescription drugs from chemist shops to stem the spread of HIV, the United Nations anti-AIDS agency said on Monday. Many painkillers and sedatives are freely available over the counter in India without any prescription from doctors or hospitals, even though the
Bangladesh gets U.N. award for AIDS prevention: Reuters NewMedia - December 11, 2006; DHAKA - A Bangladeshi women s group was awarded a cash prize of $20,000 on Monday for its work in preventing the spread of HIV/AIDS, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) said. The Durjoy Nari Shongo (indomitable women s council) shared the UNDP s Red Ribbon 2006 award with four other groups in
Speak up, sir...You need the extra small condoms?: Reuters NewMedia - December 8, 2006; NEW DELHI - Condoms designed to meet international size specifications are too big for many Indian men as their penises fall short of what manufacturers had anticipated, an Indian study has found. The Indian Council of Medical Research, a leading state-run center, said its initial findings from a two-year study showed
Doctors urge Libya to drop medics' death penalty: Reuters NewMedia - December 8, 2006; LONDON - Groups representing doctors and nurses worldwide urged the Libyan government on Friday to drop death sentences against six foreign medics accused of deliberately infecting more than 400 children with HIV. The World Medical Association (WMA) and the International Council of Nurses (ICN) cited new scientific evi
Hormonal contraception doesn't raise HIV risk: study: Reuters NewMedia - December 8, 2006; WASHINGTON - Using hormonal contraception does not appear to increase women s overall risk of contracting the AIDS virus, according to a U.S. National Institutes of Health study published on Thursday. The study, published on the Web site of the journal AIDS, followed thousands of women in Africa and Asia and compared t
Scientists Say Malaria Fuels AIDS Spread in Africa: Reuters NewMedia - December 7, 2006; WASHINGTON - Malaria may be helping spread the AIDS virus across Africa, the continent hardest hit by the incurable disease, scientists said on Thursday. The way the two diseases interact greatly expands the prevalence of both among people in sub-Saharan Africa, a team of scientists said in a study in the journal Scien
Gilead gets subpoena over HIV drugs: Reuters NewMedia - December 7, 2006; NEW YORK - Biotechnology company Gilead Sciences Inc. (GILD.O: Quote, Profile , Research) on Thursday said it received a subpoena from the U.S. Department of Justice related to its marketing and medical education programs for three of its HIV medications. Gilead, in a statement, said the subpoena requested documents fo
New scientific evidence in Libyan HIV court case: Reuters NewMedia - December 6, 2006; Patricia Reaney; LONDON - Scientists have produced new evidence that casts doubts on charges against five Bulgarian nurses and a Palestinian doctor accused of deliberately infecting 426 Libyan children with HIV in 1998. The trial of the six health workers ended in Tripoli last month. The prosecutor demanded the death penalty after five
CHRONOLOGY-Libya HIV trial of Bulgarian medics: Reuters NewMedia - December 6, 2006; Scientists have produced new evidence that casts doubts on charges against five Bulgarian nurses and a Palestinian doctor accused of deliberately infecting 426 Libyan children with HIV in 1998. Following is a chronology of key events in the case: Feb. 1999 - Nineteen Bulgarian medical workers in Libya are detained in i
China to prosecute deliberate AIDS infections: Reuters NewMedia - December 6, 2006; BEIJING - China will prosecute people who deliberately infect others with HIV, state media said on Wednesday. Those who know they are infected with AIDS or are sick with AIDS and deliberately infect others will be severely punished according to the law, the Beijing News said, citing an unnamed police officer as telling
Afghan drugs a worry as Pakistanis confront AIDS: Reuters NewMedia - December 6, 2006; ISLAMABAD - Afghanistan s booming opium trade is a huge concern for Pakistan as it confronts the spread of HIV/AIDS, especially among intravenous drug users, Pakistan s minister of health said on Wednesday. Pakistan recorded its first case of HIV infection in 1987 and the number of confirmed cases is now 3,556 -- of wh
Clinton urges end to HIV/AIDS stigma in Vietnam: Reuters NewMedia - December 6, 2006; Grant McCool, grant.mccool.reuters.com@reuters.net; HANOI - Former U.S. President Bill Clinton urged young Vietnamese on Wednesday to talk more about HIV and AIDS to reduce fear and ignorance of the disease and discourage discrimination. The more you talk about it and the more people see flesh and blood human beings who are HIV positive who are good people and not frigh
China hospital to compensate AIDS victims: Reuters NewMedia - December 5, 2006; BEIJING - A hospital in northeastern China will pay 20 million yuan ($2.56 million) to 19 people it infected with HIV through illegal, unscreened blood transfusions in 2004, state media reported on Tuesday. The hospital in Heilongjiang province infected 15 patients with HIV through transfusions of untested blood from i
Will circumcising men be a solution to HIV/AIDS in Africa?: Reuters NewMedia - December 5, 2006; With almost 25 million Africans infected, 2.8 million new infections last year and 2.1 million deaths, the statistics are as grim as ever. But after years of relentlessly negative news about HIV/AIDS in Africa, health experts this year are nursing hopes that at long last there may be a simple step doctors can take to f
One in 4 Zimbabwe children are AIDS orphans-UNICEF: Reuters NewMedia - December 5, 2006; HARARE - Zimbabwe now has the world s highest percentage of children orphaned by AIDS, with almost one in every four children having lost at least one parent to the disease, the United Nations Children s Fund said on Tuesday. Zimbabwe is among the countries worst hit by the HIV/AIDS pandemic, which kills more than 3,00
Clinton Holds Up Cambodia's AIDS Effort as Model: Reuters NewMedia - December 4, 2006; PHNOM PENH (Reuters) - Former U.S. President Bill Clinton praised Cambodia on Monday for its success in fighting HIV/AIDS, saying other countries should take note of its twin strategy of public education and widespread condom promotion. There is a hope that Cambodia can be a model for the rest of Asia and perhaps for t
Clinton assists Papua New Guinea AIDS fight: Reuters NewMedia - December 3, 2006; SYDNEY - Former U.S. president Bill Clinton was made an honorary chief in Papua New Guinea on Sunday after signing an agreement to help combat HIV-AIDS in the South Pacific island nation. Clinton praised PNG leaders for facing up to the challenge of HIV/AIDS and not denying its threat, in a country where the disease is
Gilead CEO pleased with sales of combo AIDS drug: Reuters NewMedia - December 1, 2006; Lewis Krauskopf; NEW YORK - The chief executive of Gilead Sciences Inc. (GILD.O: Quote, Profile , Research) said on Friday that the launch of its triple-combination AIDS drug, Atripla, is going quite well and that the arrival of simplified therapies would help encourage more patients to seek treatment. Atripla won U.S. approval as
Chinese province plans pre-marriage AIDS test: Reuters NewMedia - December 1, 2006; BEIJING - A Chinese province which has been ravaged by AIDS plans to force all couples in the worst-hit areas to take compulsory HIV tests before being married, the official Xinhua news agency reported on Saturday. The results of the free tests in Yunnan, obligatory from January 1, will be given by health authorities t
Brazil set to order, give away 1 billion condoms: Reuters NewMedia - December 1, 2006; BRASILIA, Brazil - Brazil will place an order for 1 billion condoms before January s end and give them away in coming years as part of its AIDS prevention program, Health Minister Agenor Alvares said on Friday. Speaking at an event to mark World AIDS Day, Alvares said the government would accept bids for a supply contr
Zimbabwe Shows Way for Africa AIDS Fight: Mugabe: Reuters NewMedia - December 1, 2006; HARARE - Zimbabwe is showing the way for Africa in the fight against HIV/AIDS, President Robert Mugabe said on Friday as he urged Zimbabweans to take greater personal responsibility in stopping the epidemic. Zimbabwe is among the countries worst hit by the HIV/AIDS epidemic, which kills more than 3,000 people every wee
South Africa seeks to cut new HIV infections by 50 pct: Reuters NewMedia - December 1, 2006; Andrew Quinn; JOHANNESBURG - South Africa unveiled a draft five-year battle plan against HIV/AIDS on Friday, vowing to cut new infections by 50 percent and turn back an epidemic now killing almost 1,000 South Africans each day. In a rare show of unity, government officials joined community leaders and activists to announce the new p
South Africa AIDS epidemic is not just a tragic story: Reuters NewMedia - December 1, 2006; Sarah McGregor; ORANGE FARM, South Africa - By sun-up, Valencia Mofokeng has her modest home in the ramshackle black township near Johannesburg humming like a well-oiled machine. Her six small children have bathed in a plastic washbasin, the dirt yard is swept, the bed is made and Mofokeng is dishing out a hot breakfast of scrambled e
Firms should administer life-saving AIDS drugs: UN: Reuters NewMedia - December 1, 2006; GENEVA - The workplace may be the best setting for millions of people with HIV and AIDS to be administered drugs that could extend their lives, the International Labour Organization (ILO) said on Friday. In a report published on World AIDS Day, the United Nations agency said that more than 24 million people in the glob
AIDS programs fail to reach high-risk groups: UN: Reuters NewMedia - December 1, 2006; GENEVA - Surveillance for the HIV virus is weak in most of the world and prevention and treatment programs often fail to reach high-risk drug users, homosexuals and sex workers, the World Health Organization said on Friday. In a message marking World AIDS Day, being celebrated under the theme of Accountability, the WHO
China AIDS orphans tour Communist Party compound: Reuters NewMedia - December 1, 2006; BEIJING - Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao invited 15 HIV/AIDS orphans and child victims to tour the ruling Communist Party s headquarters on Friday as a top U.N. official said China needed more education to combat the disease s stigma. Beijing was initially slow to acknowledge the threat, but it has stepped up the fight aga
Discrimination still harms China AIDS fight: UN: Reuters NewMedia - December 1, 2006; BEIJING - China is moving in the right direction in the fight against HIV/AIDS, a top U.N. official said on Friday, but needs more education to combat discrimination and stigma, particularly in the nation s vast interior. U.N. China Resident Coordinator Khalid Malik said there was great unevenness in the supply of he
North Korea claims complete success in AIDS fight: Reuters NewMedia - December 1, 2006; SEOUL - North Korea has relied on the wise leadership of Kim Jong-il to make sure there have been no outbreaks of AIDS in the reclusive country, its official media reported on Friday. North Korean media, which often gives glowing reports of Kim offering expert guidance on subjects as varied as cobbling shoes, firing ho
Indians want AIDS drugs, Indonesians worry about sex: Reuters NewMedia - December 1, 2006; Kamil Zaheer; NEW DELHI - Hundreds of Indians demonstrated on Friday to demand new anti-retroviral (ARV) drugs, while health workers in Muslim-majority Indonesia marked World AIDS Day by handing out condoms to prostitutes for safe sex. As people across continents threw a spotlight on the scourge of AIDS, secretive
Russia says Libyan verdict on medics is cruel: Reuters NewMedia - December 20, 2006; MOSCOW - Russia on Wednesday denounced as exceedingly cruel the death sentences passed by a Libyan court on six foreign medics convicted of deliberately infecting hundreds of Libyan children with the virus that causes AIDS. The court sentenced five Bulgarian nurses and a Palestinian doctor to death on Tuesday, saying t
Indian gay law hits rights, AIDS fight -UN: Reuters NewMedia - November 30, 2006; Kamil Zaheer; NEW DELHI - India is violating the human rights of its gay minority and undermining a battle against HIV/AIDS by holding on to a puritan colonial-era law that bans homosexuality, the UNAIDS country chief said on Thursday. Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code, which carries a jail term of 10 years for m
Pakistan in a state of AIDS denial - U.N. official: Reuters NewMedia - November 30, 2006; ISLAMABAD - Pakistan is in a state of denial about the extent of its HIV/AIDS problem, and political leaders need to understand the reality or it will be very difficult to contain the epidemic, a U.N. AIDS official said. The Pakistani government has reported about 3,500 cases of people with HIV, of whom 367 have develo
Activists hail Thai move to make generic AIDS drug: Reuters NewMedia - November 30, 2006; Darren Schuettler; BANGKOK - Thailand , faced with ballooning costs for HIV-AIDS drugs, has issued its first compulsory licence to make a cheap version of a foreign-made drug and fired a shot across the bow of big pharmaceutical companies. The action drew a swift riposte from U.S. drug maker Merck & Co Inc, which holds the patent on
China takes HIV/AIDS prevention to the masses: Reuters NewMedia - November 30, 2006; BEIJING - On the eve of World AIDS Day, construction workers at the building site of Beijing s CCTV tower put down tools and picked up condoms and brochures touting safe sex and HIV/AIDS prevention. This is a scary disease, said 22-year-old Mao Licai from China s western province of Sichuan. I think we should let more
WHO urges more government action against HIV/AIDS: Reuters NewMedia - November 30, 2006; MANILA - The World Health Organization urged political leaders in the Western Pacific region to step up efforts to stop the spread of the AIDS virus, saying the number of infections continues to grow. In 2006, an estimated 8.6 million people in Asia were living with HIV, nearly 1 million of whom were infected in the pa
Want great sex? Wait, says South African chastity campaign: Reuters NewMedia - November 29, 2006; Rebecca Harrison; ELDORADO PARK, South Africa - Hip-hop anthems pound, coloured lights flash and hundreds of teenagers scream as two young men stride onto the stage. We ve come all the way to tell you guys how great sex can be, they yell into the microphone, drawing whoops of delight from the crowd gathered in this South African townshi
Bono Praises Japan Aid Policy, Calls PM Abe "Cool": Reuters NewMedia - November 29, 2006; TOKYO - Bono, the Irish rock star and outspoken campaigner against poverty and AIDS, praised Japan s policies on those issues on Wednesday, in a departure from his usual criticism of rich nations for not living up to expectations. Following a meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, the front man for U2 said th
Zambia's "weeping president" sings to fight AIDS: Reuters NewMedia - November 29, 2006; Cris Chinaka; (The following story is part of a series on AIDS in Africa being issued on Nov. 29 ahead of World AIDS Day.) LUSAKA - A haunting tune plays from a radio at a crowded flea market behind Zambia s main business district, accompanied by a baritone voice urging Africa to rise up against AIDS. That s KK, it s very nice, very
Believers seek AIDS cure at Ethiopian springs: Reuters NewMedia - November 29, 2006; Tsegaye Tadesse; ADDIS ABABA - Shivering under a tattered blanket, a young woman tries to sleep at the foot of the mist-shrouded Entoto Mountain, north of the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa. Nearby, a mother and child huddle together in the early morning cold. I decided to come to Entoto to seek a cure from the holy water after a docto
Surgeon's knife may offer hope in African AIDS fight: Reuters NewMedia - November 29, 2006; Andrew Quinn; MAPUTO - With almost 25 million Africans infected, 2.8 million new infections last year and 2.1 million deaths, the statistics are as grim as ever as Africa readies for World AIDS Day on December 1. But after years of relentlessly negative news about HIV/AIDS in Africa, health experts this year are nursing hopes that a
China TV to air AIDS film minus Dalai Lama: Reuters NewMedia - November 29, 2006; Benjamin Kang Lim; BEIJING - China has agreed to let state television air an acclaimed foreign documentary on AIDS after an interview with Tibet s Dalai Lama was removed, the film s American director said on Wednesday. China vies with the Dalai Lama for Tibetan hearts and minds and zealously seeks to curb his influence. The Himalayan reg
South Africa seeks new start on AIDS fight: Reuters NewMedia - November 29, 2006; Wendell Roelf; CAPE TOWN - South Africa will unveil a new plan aimed at fighting its HIV/AIDS crisis on Friday, seeking to calm bitter debate and revamp policies that have thus far done little to stop the epidemic. South Africa s AIDS battle has been two-fold, with doctors and community groups struggling to help an estimated 5 millio
Tobacco-related diseases to take high toll: study: Reuters NewMedia - November 28, 2006; Stephanie Nebehay; GENEVA - Tobacco-related diseases including cancers and heart disease will kill 6.4 million people a year by 2015, 50 percent more than AIDS, a study said on Tuesday. But the HIV/AIDS epidemic will be the leading cause of illness and disability in low- and middle-income countries by then and take an increasing number o
UNICEF sees higher Kazakh HIV numbers: Reuters NewMedia - November 28, 2006; ALMATY - The number of people living with HIV in Kazakhstan could be three times higher than official figures, a U.N. Children s Fund (UNICEF) official was quoted as saying on Tuesday. At least seven small children died in the Central Asian nation over the past few months due to transfusion of blood suspected of contai
Indonesia projects 500,000 HIV cases by 2010: Reuters NewMedia - November 28, 2006; JAKARTA - Indonesia , the world s fourth most populous country, is projecting half a million HIV cases by 2010, and double that if preventive steps are not taken, the health minister said on Tuesday. Current estimates put the number of cases in a range of 169,000-216,000 in Indonesia, which has a total population of 22
Lacking free AIDS drugs, 18 die in Indian town: Reuters NewMedia - November 28, 2006; Rupam Jain Nair; AHMEDABAD - Eighteen impoverished Indians with AIDS died in one district in western India in the last two months because the nearest state supply of free drugs is hundreds of kilometres away, an HIV advocacy group said on Tuesday. The absence of a regular supply of anti-retroviral (ARV) drugs has claimed 18 lives in th
Ad agencies join forces for World AIDS Day: Reuters NewMedia - November 27, 2006; Kate Holton; LONDON - Seven of the world s leading ad agencies have teamed up with MTV to produce for free a campaign to raise awareness of HIV and AIDS, using humour and controversy to attack the stigma and complacency surrounding the disease. In an interview with Reuters, Bill Roedy, President of MTV Networks International (MTVNI
Hospital struggles with deadly South Africa TB: Reuters NewMedia - November 27, 2006; Sarah McGregor; TUGELA FERRY, South Africa - In a country where AIDS kills 900 people each day, full hospitals and beleaguered doctors are nothing new. But at one hospital in rural KwaZulu-Natal province, what could be a new public health nightmare is taking its toll as doctors and nurses grapple with a new, highly drug-resistant form
Mining co's help fund Australia's Virax African HIV trial: Reuters NewMedia - November 27, 2006; Ben Wilson; SYDNEY - Australian biotech firm Virax Holdings Ltd. said on Monday eight big mining companies had agreed to pay for trials of its HIV vaccine in South Africa , which is battling one of the world s worst AIDS crises. Virax applied to South Africa s drugs regulator in September for approval to conduct a clinical trial o
China frees AIDS activist, four others in custody: Reuters NewMedia - November 27, 2006; BEIJING - Chinese police freed an AIDS activist on Monday after holding him for days and forcing him to scrap a planned conference, but four other people were still in custody, a non-governmental organisation said on its Web site. Chinese authorities are wary of organisations they cannot directly control, such as indep
China police ban hemophilia forum: source: Reuters NewMedia - November 25, 2006; SHANGHAI - Chinese police have banned a conference involving hemophiliac activists and are believed to be holding one of the main organizers for questioning, a source close to the organizers said on Saturday. The conference, Blood safety, AIDS and Human Rights , was organized by the Beijing Aizhixing Institute of Healt
Don't reject or abandon AIDS victims, Pope says: Reuters NewMedia - November 24, 2006; Philip Pullella; VATICAN CITY, Nov 24 (Reuters) - Sufferers of infectious diseases such as AIDS should not be victims of prejudice, rejection and indifference by a society obsessed with personal physical beauty and health, Pope Benedict said on Friday. The Pope, speaking to participants of a conference on the pastoral care of patients
Rare AIDS protest backs South Africa health minister: Reuters NewMedia - November 22, 2006; Dinky Mkhize; JOHANNESBURG - South Africa s embattled health minister received a rare public boost on Wednesday when hundreds of traditional African healers marched in Johannesburg to support her natural treatments for HIV/AIDS. Several hundred healers, many wrapped in red cloaks and headscarves, praised Health Minister Manto Tshaba
UK billionaire helps AIDS fight in safari land: Reuters NewMedia - November 22, 2006; Andrew Quinn; ULUSABA, South Africa - Wealthy tourists jetting into South Africa to stay at luxury safari lodges pay top dollar for the illusion of danger, epitomised by a trumpeting elephant or a lion moving in for a kill. But lodge workers and the impoverished surrounding communities face a threat far more deadly than the leopards
China says reported HIV/AIDS cases up nearly 30 pct: Reuters NewMedia - November 22, 2006; BEIJING - The number of reported HIV/AIDS cases in China has grown by nearly 30 per cent so far this year, the Health Ministry said on Wednesday, warning the virus seemed to be spreading from high-risk groups to the general public. The reported number of cases at the end of October had risen to 183,733, up from 144,089
Poems of Indian AIDS patient battle prejudice: Reuters NewMedia - November 21, 2006; NEW DELHI - Poems written by a young Indian AIDS patient describing the shame and fear he felt after being diagnosed with the disease have been recorded by a top pop band to help tackle the prejudice sufferers face. In his poems, 26-year-old Ricky Tombing, from the northeastern state of Manipur, gives an insight into t
Pope-commissioned condom study passes first hurdle: Reuters NewMedia - November 21, 2006; Philip Pullella; VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - A study commissioned by Pope Benedict on the use of condoms to fight AIDS has passed its first hurdle and is now being reviewed by top theologians for possible use in a Papal document, a cardinal said on Tuesday. This is something that worries the Pope a lot, said Cardinal Javier Lozano Barraga
Nearly 40 million people live with HIV worldwide: Reuters NewMedia - November 21, 2006; Nearly 40 million people are living with HIV worldwide, 2.6 million more than in 2004, and the number of new infections reached 4.3 million in 2006, according to the World Health Organisation and UNAIDS . Here are some key facts from the latest annual report by the two United Nations agencies: *Two thirds of those
HIV infection on rise in all regions: U.N.: Reuters NewMedia - November 21, 2006; Stephanie Nebehay; GENEVA (Reuters) - HIV infection is rising in every region of the world and most worryingly in countries like Uganda and Thailand , which had been heralded as success stories in the fight against AIDS, the United Nations said on Tuesday. Nearly 40 million adults and children are infected worldwide.
Immtech says oral drug candidate gets orphan status: Reuters NewMedia - November 21, 2006; Immtech Pharmaceuticals Inc. said its drug candidate to treat a type of pneumonia that infects HIV/AIDS and other immunosuppressed patients received orphan drug status from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The company said its drug candidate, pafuramidine, is now in late stage clinical trials in HIV/AIDS patients
Researchers say Canadian injection site a success: Reuters NewMedia - November 20, 2006; Allan Dowd; VANCOUVER, British Columbia - North America s only sanctioned drug injection site has successfully steered addicts into treatment and not created the crime that critics had feared, according to a study released on Monday. Closing the Vancouver facility, which was opened in 2003 as a research experiment, would also like
Treatable diseases kill millions of Africans: WHO: Reuters NewMedia - November 20, 2006; GENEVA - Millions of mothers, newborn babies and children die each year in Africa from preventable diseases despite promises of better healthcare by governments and donor countries, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said on Monday. Because of AIDS and armed conflicts, the health situation in many countries has not im
India told to get grip on HIV in 2007: Reuters NewMedia - November 19, 2006; Jonathan Allen; NEW DELHI - India must get on top of its HIV epidemic by next year or risk seeing it spiral out of control, the man who controls the richest private anti-AIDS fund in the country and a senior United Nations official warned. The signs are still ominous, Ashok Alexander, the director of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foun
Indian state to adopt workplace HIV policy - report: Reuters NewMedia - November 19, 2006; MUMBAI - India s western state of Maharashtra is set to introduce a policy aimed at curbing discrimination against HIV-infected workers, a leading newspaper said on Sunday. It would cover areas such as recruitment, transfers and promotions, and would be applied first in all state government offices, the Hindustan Times
Condoms urged in prisons to curb AIDS in blacks: Reuters NewMedia - November 16, 2006; Will Dunham; WASHINGTON - U.S. prisons should make condoms available to inmates and test for HIV as part of a broader effort to curb the spread of AIDS among blacks, hit disproportionately hard by the incurable disease, experts urged on Thursday. The National Minority AIDS Council advocacy group, backed by U.S. black lawmakers and
Patents still blocking drugs for poor: activists: Reuters NewMedia - November 14, 2006; Ben Hirschler; LONDON - Poor people in developing countries are still not getting access to many life-saving drugs five years after a trade declaration that rich countries should put patients before profits, campaigners said on Tuesday. British-based anti-poverty charity Oxfam, AIDS campaigners and medical groups said rich nations we
Ugandan refugees see little benefit from truce-charity: Reuters NewMedia - November 13, 2006; Tim Cocks; KAMPALA - A temporary truce has raised hopes of an end to Uganda s 20-year war but the lull in the fighting has not led to improved conditions in the country s teeming refugee camps, a top charity said on Monday. The situation in the camps has not changed at all, Alice Uwase Anukur, secretary general of Uganda Red Cros
Gap, others, see 'Red' for the US holiday season: Reuters NewMedia - November 12, 2006; Chelsea Emery; NEW YORK - Charity Red is the new black this holiday season, but for many companies even a high level of global altruism may not be enough to push their own finances any further into the black. A number of big companies have joined the Red initiative by donating some proceeds from selected products to help The Global F
Taiwan says HIV cases coming from China: Reuters NewMedia - November 10, 2006; TAIPEI - A recent explosion of HIV-AIDS cases in Taiwan is coming from China and is being spread by drug users, prompting the island to step up its prevention efforts, medical experts said on Friday. The HIV strain among Taiwan s intravenous drug users was the same as that circulating in western China, pa
Panel wants major overhaul of projects for poor: Reuters NewMedia - November 9, 2006; Evelyn Leopold; UNITED NATIONS - A high-level panel called on Thursday for a radical overhaul of a jumble of U.N. development, relief and environmental agencies and programs that waste money in turf battles and duplication. The appeal comes from a group of prime ministers and other officials who recommended greater cohesion between bo
Africa stagnates while world gets richer-UNDP: Reuters NewMedia - November 9, 2006; Gordon Bell; CAPE TOWN - The world as a whole has seen unprecedented growth over the past 30 years, but the prosperity has not been evenly shared and AIDS-ravaged sub-Saharan Africa in particular is stagnating, a U.N. development report said. When it comes to human development, the rising tide of global prosperity has lifted some b
US drug makers apply to sell HIV pill in Europe: Reuters NewMedia - November 9, 2006; NEW YORK - Drug makers Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. (BMY.N: Quote, Profile, Research) , Gilead Sciences , Inc. (GILD.O: Quote, Profile, Research) and Merck & Co. (MRK.N: Quote, Profile, Research) Inc. have submitted an application to European regulators to approve a new pill to treat HIV-1 infection, the three compan
Monkey form of HIV may be endemic in wild gorillas: Reuters NewMedia - November 8, 2006; Patrcia Reaney; LONDON - A monkey virus similar to HIV is endemic in wild gorillas in Africa and was probably transmitted to them by chimpanzees, researchers said on Wednesday. About 40 million people worldwide are living with HIV/AIDS. The origins of two of the three strains of the virus in humans have been traced back to monkeys in
India recruits beggars to curb spread of AIDS: Reuters NewMedia - November 8, 2006; Bappa Majumdar; KOLKATA - Thousands of beggars in eastern India have been recruited to help stem the spread of the HIV/AIDS virus by singing songs and acting in plays about safe sex. Officials in the impoverished state of Bihar say they want to train many of the state s estimated 100,000 vagrants to sing songs in trains and buses and
China's Chan named to become WHO chief: Reuters NewMedia - November 8, 2006; Laura MacInnis; GENEVA - The World Health Organization (WHO) on Wednesday nominated China s Margaret Chan, its top official on bird flu, as its new chief as it gears up for a feared flu pandemic and battles global scourges such as AIDS. Chan, 59, will become the first person from China to head a major U.N. agency. A former director of
U.S. experiment uses AIDS to fight AIDS: Reuters NewMedia - November 7, 2006; Maggie Fox, Health and Science Editor; WASHINGTON - An AIDS virus genetically engineered to fight other AIDS viruses worked better than expected, suppressing the virus and renewing the immune systems of a few patients, researchers reported on Monday. The study involved just five people, and such an approach needs years more study, they cautioned -- but the
Kenya gets $70 million HIV grant from Global Fund: Reuters NewMedia - November 6, 2006; NAIROBI - Kenya received $70 million funding from The Global Fund on Monday to fund programmes providing antiretroviral (ARV) drugs to people living with HIV in the east African country, officials said. Kenya s AIDS prevalence dropped from 14 percent in 2000 to 6.9 percent in 2006, but an estimated 1.3 million people a
China sex experts draw the line at wife-swapping: Reuters NewMedia - November 6, 2006; BEIJING - Chinese sociologists said that the country should promote bolder attitudes towards sex, but that wife-swapping was off the agenda, state media reported on Monday. Chinese attitudes towards sex have relaxed in recent decades, triggering a boom in extramarital relationships which the Communist Party has blamed
CHRONOLOGY-Libya HIV trial of Bulgarian medics: Reuters NewMedia - November 4, 2006; A Libyan court will deliver its verdict on six foreign medics accused of deliberately infecting Libyan children with HIV on Dec 19, the judge said on Saturday. Following is a chronology of key events in the case. Feb 1999 - Nineteen Bulgarian medical workers in Libya detained in connection with investigation into how c
India's HIV/AIDS campaigners to target holymen: Reuters NewMedia - November 4, 2006; NEW DELHI - Indian HIV/AIDS activists are to target one of the Hindu religion s biggest congregations in January to spread awareness about the disease infecting millions of Indians, they said on Saturday. More than 60 million pilgrims are expected to gather on the banks of the Ganges river in the northern city of Allah
Judge sets date for Libya HIV verdict: Reuters NewMedia - November 4, 2006; TRIPOLI, Libya (Reuters) -- A Libyan court will deliver its verdict on five Bulgarian nurses and a Palestinian doctor accused of deliberately infecting Libyan children with HIV on December 19, the judge said on Saturday. The six, who have been in detention since 1999, face a possible death sentence on charges they inte
Key facts about candidates to head WHO: Reuters NewMedia - November 3, 2006; The 193-state World Health Organisation (WHO) next week elects a new head to lead the fight against scourges such as AIDS and drugs-resistant tuberculosis, and prepare for a feared flu pandemic. The 11 candidates for the job will be cut to 5 by the WHO s executive board on Monday. After a day for interviews, the board
Study shows why the young may shun condoms: Reuters NewMedia - November 3, 2006; LONDON - Social and cultural factors, not just unavailability or ignorance, influence why young people do not use condoms, researchers said on Friday. Some sexually active under 25s associate condoms with a lack of trust, while others believe carrying them could imply sexual experience, which might be a plus for men bu
Flavored condom ad in bad taste?: Reuters NewMedia - November 3, 2006; NEW DELHI - Indian authorities want to stop the daytime airing of a television advertisement promoting flavoured condoms saying it is obscene and in bad taste, a newspaper reported Friday. The advert promotes DKT s XXX strawberry, chocolate and banana flavoured condoms with the catchline What is your flavor of the nigh
Scientists get snapshot of AIDS defense mechanism: Reuters NewMedia - November 2, 2006; Maggie Fox, Health and Science Editor; WASHINGTON - Scientists trying to figure out why a few people resist the ravages of AIDS say they have captured a snapshot of an immune system structure that could help them design a drug to boost the body s defenses against the virus. Having an image of the enzyme, called A3G, could help researchers design a drug to m
Malawi clinic to showcase child AIDS treatment: Reuters NewMedia - November 2, 2006; LILONGWE, Nov 2 (Reuters) - Malawi opened one of Africa s first modern paediatric AIDS centres on Thursday in what officials said was the first step in dealing with an epidemic that has seen many child victims die for want of treatment. Malawi Health Minister Marjorie Ngaunje said the new Baylor College of Medicine Int
TB making "alarming" comeback in Britain: Reuters NewMedia - November 2, 2006; LONDON - Tuberculosis is making an alarming comeback in Britain, decades after doctors came close to eradicating the disease, public health officials said on Thursday. More than 8,000 people were infected last year by the airborne disease, one of the biggest killers in the Victorian era when it was known as White Death
Global Fund board postpones selecting new chief: Reuters NewMedia - November 2, 2006; GENEVA - The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria has postponed until April the selection of a new chief after its board failed to reach consensus on a candidate, it said on Thursday. The United Nations-backed fund, one of the main financiers of efforts to fight the killer scourges, had been due at a mee
India fears faulty HIV test kits spread disease: Reuters NewMedia - November 2, 2006; Bappa Majumdar; KOLKATA - Faulty blood-testing kits for HIV and hepatitis may have been fraudulently sold to government clinics across India , possibly resulting in people receiving transfusions of infected blood, officials said on Thursday. The government is seizing kits across the country and has ordered a probe into the possible fr
New U.S. HIV cases to cost $12 billion a year: study: Reuters NewMedia - November 1, 2006; NEW YORK - Future treatment for the 40,000 people infected with HIV in the United States every year will cost $12.1 billion annually, a new study showed on Wednesday. U.S. patients infected with HIV can expect medical bills for current care related to the disease of $618,900 during their lifetimes, according to the stu
Mandela receives top Amnesty Int'l award: Reuters NewMedia - November 1, 2006; JOHANNESBURG - Anti-apartheid hero Nelson Mandela received Amnesty International s 2006 Ambassador of Conscience award on Wednesday for being a moral beacon in a world plagued by human rights abuses. The award was presented by South Africa s Nobel Prize winning author Nadine Gordimer in Johannesburg at the foundation M
Reproductive health "taboo for many countries": Reuters NewMedia - November 1, 2006; Patricia Reaney; LONDON - Millions of women have no access to family planning and undergo unsafe abortions each year because sexual and reproductive health is a taboo subject in many countries, researchers said on Wednesday. Although there are cheap, effective methods to prevent sexually transmitted infections (STIs), unwanted pregnanc
Red Cross asks for $300 million for Africa HIV care: Reuters NewMedia - November 1, 2006; JOHANNESBURG - The International Red Cross is appealing for $300 million to expand an HIV/AIDS programme in southern Africa that will reach 250,000 patients in rural villages hard-hit by the epidemic. Southern Africa is home to 12 million HIV-positive people, about one-third of the world s total, and the disease is res
Japanese scientists say identify anti-TB compound: Reuters NewMedia - November 28, 2006; HONG KONG - Scientists in Japan say they have identified a compound that appears to stop the tuberculosis bacteria from multiplying, offering new hope in the fight against the increasingly drug-resistant disease. At least a third of the world s population is estimated to be infected with the TB bacteria, which are prot
New South Africa AIDS chief vows 'much better' results: Reuters NewMedia - October 31, 2006; Sarah McGregor; JOHANNESBURG - South Africa s new coordinator on HIV/AIDS conceded on Tuesday the government had fallen short in fighting the epidemic and promised much better results using life-saving drugs. Deputy President Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka now heads the South African National AIDS Council (SANAC) and is President Thabo Mbeki
Neglect caused Libya HIV cases, court told: Reuters NewMedia - October 31, 2006; Salah Sarrar; TRIPOLI - Poor hygiene and neglect led to the infection of hundreds of Libyan children with the HIV virus, defence lawyers said on Tuesday at the retrial of six foreign medics accused of deliberating infecting the children. Five Bulgarian nurses and Palestinian doctor Ashraf Alhajouj face a possible death sentence on c
Regulators should fast-track tuberculosis drugs: MSF: Reuters NewMedia - October 30, 2006; Laura MacInnis; GENEVA - Drugs showing promise against virulent new strains of tuberculosis should have their regulatory approval fast-tracked because existing medicines are ineffective, Medicins Sans Frontieres (MSF) said on Monday. Tido von Schoen-Angerer, director of MSF s Campaign for Access to Essential Medicines, said that three
Papua police atrocities undermine AIDS fight-report: Reuters NewMedia - October 30, 2006; Michael Perry; SYDNEY - Papua New Guinea has failed to stop abuse by police who beat, torture and rape children, undermining the fight against an escalating HIV-AIDS epidemic, New York-based Human Rights Watch said in a report on Monday. In its second report in two years on police brutality in
Cost of conflicts hurts war on AIDS: UN's Lewis: Reuters NewMedia - October 30, 2006; Mabvuto Banda; LILONGWE - Spending by the United States and its allies on wars in Iraq and Afghanistan is undermining global efforts to save millions of lives from the scourge of AIDS, U.N. special envoy Stephen Lewis said. There is a human calamity here.
Israeli bedside manner helps Ethiopian AIDS doctors: Reuters NewMedia - October 26, 2006; Corinne Heller; JERUSALEM - Ethiopian doctors battling an AIDS epidemic are learning new methods of treatment in Israel from local physicians who gained experience caring for HIV-infected Ethiopian migrants to the Jewish state. The Israeli training course, now in its fourth year, is part of a U.S.-sponsored world AIDS relief effort pr
South Africa drafting revised AIDS battle plan: Reuters NewMedia - October 26, 2006; Wendell Roelf; CAPE TOWN - South Africa s cabinet on Thursday endorsed a revised version of its national blueprint to fight HIV/AIDS, which has come under increasing criticism as the epidemic cuts an ever deeper swathe through the population. Sub-Saharan Africa s most powerful economy, South Africa faces a public health crisis as it
Gates pledges $23 million to fight AIDS in India: Reuters NewMedia - October 25, 2006; NEW DELHI - The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation have pledged $23 million to help fight HIV/AIDS in India , which has the world s highest number of people living with the disease, India s health ministry said. The funds, to be disbursed over the next three years, will enhance the capacity of the government s HIV preve
Malaysia fights looming AIDS epidemic: Reuters NewMedia - October 25, 2006; Liau Y-Sing; KUALA LUMPUR - Ex-convict Jonah Chan is a casualty of Malaysia s losing battle against AIDS. In 1984, he was jailed for three years for robbery. He came out a drug addict and is now infected with the AIDS virus. I contracted HIV by injecting drugs. I shared needles, said 41-year-old Chan who has been in and out of a ho
Clients give lessons on AIDS in India's brothels: Reuters NewMedia - October 25, 2006; Bappa Majumdar; KOLKATA, India - Activists in eastern India battling to curb HIV/AIDS infections in one of Asia s biggest red light districts have recruited an unusual group of people to help fight the deadly virus -- the customers of prostitutes. Kolkata s notorious red light area, Sonagachhi, is home to about 10,000 prostitutes, who
Cultural body seeks South Africa law for male circumcision: Reuters NewMedia - October 24, 2006; JOHANNESBURG - A South African cultural rights group on Tuesday urged the government to establish legal ground rules for male circumcision rituals to prevent botched surgeries by traditional healers. Over the last decade some 83 people have died -- including 19 this year alone -- in the Eastern Cape province as a resul
Zambian leader says AIDS, poverty threaten economy: Reuters NewMedia - October 23, 2006; Shapi Shacinda; LUSAKA - AIDS and poverty are threatening Zambia s economic gains achieved since independence from Britain in 1964, President Levy Mwanawasa said on Monday. Mwanawasa, in a speech prepared for delivery on state television on the eve of Zambia s 42nd independence anniversary, also said levels of gender violence and chil
Zambian leader says AIDS, poverty threaten economy: Reuters NewMedia - October 23, 2006; Shapi Shacinda; LUSAKA - AIDS and poverty are threatening Zambia s economic gains achieved since independence from Britain in 1964, President Levy Mwanawasa said on Monday. Mwanawasa, in a speech prepared for delivery on state television on the eve of Zambia s 42nd independence anniversary, also said levels of gender violence and chil
Bristol wins U.S. approval for single anti-HIV pill: Reuters NewMedia - Friday, October 20, 2006; NEW YORK - Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. said on Friday that U.S. regulators approved a single-capsule form of its Reyataz HIV drug to be taken as part of combination drug therapy. Taken once a day, the 300 milligram Reyataz can replace two 150 mg capsules of the drug and will be available within a week, the company said.
Indian orphanage expels two HIV-positive boys: Reuters NewMedia - October 20, 2006; AHMEDABAD, India - Two HIV-positive boys have been forced to leave an orphanage in India s Gujarat state after staff said they posed an unacceptable risk to the safety of other children, an official said on Friday. I am sad and sorry for them. Children play, eat and fight we cannot take chances, others can get infected
China bans student-founded AIDS group: Reuters NewMedia - October 19, 2006; BEIJING - China has banned an unregistered non-governmental AIDS group founded by university students in the far western region of Xinjiang, an activist and a lawyer said on Thursday. The Snow Lotus AIDS education group, which had over 200 mainly university student volunteers, was closed down on Wednesday by the local
Top South Africa AIDS doctor urges mandatory HIV tests: Reuters NewMedia - October 19, 2006; Andrew Quinn; JOHANNESBURG - South Africa , burdened with one of the world s worst AIDS crises, should institute mandatory HIV tests through employers, banks and medical insurance programs, a senior AIDS doctor said on Thursday. I don t think ignorance is a human right, Dr. Francois Venter, head of the South African HIV Clinicians S
AIDS may orphan 18 million African children by 2010 - UN: Reuters NewMedia - October 19, 2006; Nick Tattersall; DAKAR - More than 18 million children in Africa will be orphaned by AIDS by the end of the decade if more is not done to combat the pandemic among the continent s overwhelmingly young population, the United Nations said. Millions of children already orphaned or infected by the disease were being overlooked as governmen
Seventh child dies in Kazakhstan HIV case: Reuters NewMedia - October 18, 2006; ASTANA - A seventh child has died in Kazakhstan after receiving blood suspected of containing HIV in a transfusion, the health ministry said on Wednesday. Health officials have tested thousands of children for the virus near the southern city of Shymkent since the outbreak started earlier this year. The number of repor
U.S. says blood safety new Africa AIDS challenge: Reuters NewMedia - October 18, 2006; Shapi Shacinda; LUSAKA - Unsafe blood transfusions and contaminated syringes should be a new focus in the fight against AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa, which has the world s highest HIV infection rates, the top U.S. AIDS official said on Wednesday. Mark Dybul, the U.S. Global AIDS coordinator, said evidence suggested that sexual transmiss
HIV complicates Africa "super TB" threat: WHO: Reuters NewMedia - October 17, 2006; Sarah McGregor; PRETORIA - Highly drug resistant tuberculosis could become a major killer in AIDS-hit parts of Africa where governments have been slow to roll out TB control programs, the World Health Organization said on Tuesday. Urgent efforts are under way to revise global health plans and redirect donor funds to fight virulent str
INTERVIEW: AIDS spreading beyond China high risk groups: Reuters NewMedia - October 17, 2006; Tan Ee Lyn; BEIJING - AIDS in China has spread beyond high risk groups such as injecting drug users, prostitutes and homosexuals and the country is becoming like Africa in how the virus is transmitted, a senior health official says. There are 190 new HIV infections every day ... and in some high-prevalence areas, nearly one percen
Trimeris reports higher Q3 sales for HIV drug Fuzeon: Reuters NewMedia- October 16, 2006; Sayantani Ghosh; Trimeris Inc. (TRMS.O: Quote, Profile, Research) on Monday reported higher third-quarter sales for its HIV drug Fuzeon, saying this was the drug s best quarterly sales performance since its launch in 2003. The biopharmaceutical company said in a statement global net sales of Fuzeon were $63 million, an increase of 29 p
AIDS class for China sex workers angers police: Reuters NewMedia - October 15, 2006; BEIJING - An AIDS prevention lecture aimed at Chinese sex workers who were given free condoms has sparked a strong rebuke from police, a newspaper said on Monday. The Center for Disease Control in northeastern Harbin held the lecture last week, calling the group of more than 50 sex workers sisters and telling them to c
Bono launches U.S. Red campaign for AIDS in Africa: Reuters NewMedia - October 13, 2006; Jill Serjeant; LOS ANGELES - Irish rock star Bono went on a shopping spree and appeared on the influential Oprah Winfrey TV chat show on Friday to launch his latest campaign to fight AIDS in Africa. Saying he was convinced that this generation can be the generation that says no to extreme poverty in Africa, the U2 singer and activist
New $100 million fund to fight killer diseases in Myanmar: Reuters NewMedia - October 13, 2006; Aung Hla Tun; YANGON - A new $100 million fund to fight three killer diseases in army-ruled Myanmar should be operational early next year under the supervision of a U.N.-appointed manager, a senior U.N. official said on Friday. The 3-Diseases Fund is a five-year programme that aims to plug the gap left by the abrupt departure of the
China saddled with rich and poor diseases: Reuters NewMedia - October 13, 2006; Tan Ee Lyn; BEIJING - Rapid modernization has given rise to complex health problems in China and it is saddled not only with diseases that afflict developing states but those in advanced countries too, senior Chinese health officials said. China was facing a double burden, Wang Ruotao, a senior research fellow at the Chinese Cente
IMF urges tiny African kingdom to woo investors: Reuters NewMedia - October 12, 2006; WASHINGTON - The International Monetary Fund on Thursday urged Lesotho to make itself more attractive to foreign investors as the tiny African kingdom tries to recover from losses to its textile industry. Economic growth is still low and much remains to be done to reduce poverty in view of Lesotho s narrow resource and
'Greedy' drugs industry struggles to polish image: Reuters NewMedia - October 12, 2006; Ben Hirschler, European Pharmaceuticals Correspondent; GENEVA - The global drugs industry, battered by controversy over drug safety and access to medicines, needs to go on the offensive to demonstrate its value to society, top executives said on Thursday. Daniel Vasella, Chief Executive of Novartis AG and outgoing president of the International Federation of Pharmaceutical
Merck buying rights to Ambrilia HIV compound: Reuters NewMedia - October 11, 2006; CHICAGO - Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK.N: Quote, Profile, Research) has agreed to acquire worldwide rights to Canadian biotech firm Ambrilia Biopharma Inc. s (AMB.TO: Quote, Profile, Research) HIV/AIDS protease inhibitor program, Ambrilia said on Thursday. Merck will pay $l7 million on signing and up to $215 million upon
Trimeris cuts '06 Fuzeon sales outlook, shares fall: Reuters NewMedia - October 11, 2006; LOS ANGELES - Trimeris Inc. (TRMS.O: Quote, Profile, Research) on Wednesday lowered its 2006 outlook for U.S. and Canadian sales of its HIV drug Fuzeon and said efforts to launch a needle-free version of the drug will be delayed. The news sent the company s shares, which fell 2 percent to close at $9.06 on Nasdaq, down
Madonna adopts African boy, village chief says: Reuters NewMedia - October 11, 2006; LIPUNGA, Malawi - Pop star Madonna is adopting a one-year-old African boy who has lived in an orphanage since losing his mother shortly after birth, the chief of the Malawi village where the boy is from said on Wednesday. Henderson Geza Dyedyereke, the headman of Lipunga, a village near the Zambian border, said he was
Indian kids to get sex, drugs lessons - report: Reuters NewMedia - October 11, 2006; NEW DELHI - Schools in conservative India will teach children as young as five years old about sexual health and drugs from next year to boost awareness of the dangers they face in a changing society, a newspaper reported on Wednesday. India s national examination board is set to introduce a new programme teaching pupi
Aurobindo gets initial US nod for anti-AIDS drug: Reuters NewMedia - October 10, 2006; MUMBAI - Indian drug maker Aurobindo Pharma Ltd. said on Tuesday it had received the U.S. Food and Drug Administration s tentative approval for the oral suspension form of anti-AIDS drug didanosine. Didanosine is the generic version of Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. s Videx ped
Six children die, 76 infected in Kazakh HIV case: Reuters NewMedia - October 10, 2006; ASTANA - Six children have died in Kazakhstan and at least 76 have been infected after transfusions of blood suspected of containing HIV, officials said on Tuesday. Health Minister Anatoly Dernovoi told a government meeting the virus was also found in eight of the children s mothers. Health officials have tested 10
MTV executive among finalists for Global Fund chief: Reuters NewMedia - October 9, 2006; GENEVA - A Republican congressman, France s AIDS ambassador and a music video executive were among those shortlisted on Monday to lead the U.N.-backed Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, a well-placed source said. Created in 2002 at the urging of United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan, the Geneva-
Crucell gets $16.2 million contract to develop HIV-vaccine: Reuters NewMedia - October 9, 2006; AMSTERDAM - Dutch biotechnology firm Crucell said on Monday it had secured a $16.2 million U.S. contract to develop a vaccine against HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. The contract is with the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH), the company said in
US drug makers apply to sell HIV pill in Europe: Reuters NewMedia - October 9, 2006; NEW YORK - Drug makers Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. (BMY.N: Quote, Profile, Research) , Gilead Sciences , Inc. (GILD.O: Quote, Profile, Research) and Merck & Co. (MRK.N: Quote, Profile, Research) Inc. have submitted an application to European regulators to approve a new pill to treat HIV-1 infection, the three compan
Deadly TB detected near South Africa-Botswana border: Reuters NewMedia - October 6, 2006; JOHANNESBURG - South African health officials reported 10 new cases of a highly drug-resistant strain of tuberculosis on Friday in a province neighbouring Botswana where it had not been detected before. Laboratory tests confirmed four people have died of so-called XDR-TB -- two since July -- in the North West province,
UNAIDS envoy Princess Stephanie urges prevention: Reuters NewMedia - October 6, 2006; GENEVA - Princess Stephanie of Monaco , who became a special representative for UNAIDS on Friday, vowed to promote prevention of the killer disease and combat discrimination against people who suffer from it. AIDS has no borders, and knows no social, political, religious or racial barriers.
U.S. OKs early test to help diagnose HIV: Reuters NewMedia - October 5, 2006; WASHINGTON - U.S. health officials have approved a Gen-Probe Inc. (GPRO.O: Quote, Profile, Research) test to help diagnose the HIV virus sooner, the Food and Drug Administration said on Thursday. The test, called the Aptima HIV-1 RNA Qualitative Assay, helps detect genetic material to diagnose the HIV-1 virus before an
More companies set to join "Red" brand AIDS fight: Reuters NewMedia - October 5, 2006; Ben Hirschler; LONDON - A second wave of companies including a major consumer electronics group is set to join the Red product branding alliance as the scheme to raise money to fight AIDS in Africa goes global. Richard Feachem, executive director of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, said on Thursday that severa
Roche says AIDS drug shows benefits when combined: Reuters NewMedia - October 5, 2006; ZURICH - Swiss drugmaker Roche AG (ROG.VX: Quote, Profile, Research) said on Thursday that up to 95 percent of patients treated with its drug Fuzeon in combination with another new kind of AIDS drug can achieve undetectable levels of HIV. That compared with 60 to 70 percent of patients who achieved undetectable HIV aft
Madonna denies adopting baby boy in Malawi: Reuters NewMedia - October 4, 2006; Steve Gorman; LOS ANGELES - A spokeswoman for Madonna on Wednesday denied claims by officials in the African nation of Malawi that the pop star had adopted a one-year-old orphan boy there. Spokeswoman Liz Rosenberg called the report completely inaccurate but said Madonna was not bothered by it because it would draw attention to the
Gen-Probe gets FDA clearance for lab test: Reuters NewMedia - October 4, 2006; CHICAGO - Gen-Probe (GPRO.O: Quote, Profile, Research) on Wednesday said it won U.S. regulatory clearance for its Procleix Ultrio test to run on the enhanced Semi-Automated Procleix System. The Procleix Ultrio test was approved to screen donated blood, plasma, organs and tissue for HIV-1 and hepatitis C virus in indivi
South Africa death toll rises to 74 in deadly TB outbreak: Reuters NewMedia - October 4, 2006; Sarah McGregor; JOHANNESBURG - The death toll from a highly drug-resistant strain of tuberculosis has risen to 74 in South Africa and a health official on Wednesday predicted more casualties from the deadly disease. The death toll since January 2005 from extremely drug resistant tuberculosis or XDR-TB jumped from a previous tally of 6
Madonna adopts baby boy in Malawi: Reuters NewMedia - October 4, 2006; Mabvuto Banda; LILONGWE (Reuters) - Pop diva Madonna adopted a young boy in Malawi on Wednesday and moved ahead with plans to fund a center for 1,000 orphans, many of whom lost parents to AIDS in the impoverished African nation. The Material Girl and an entourage arrived in the Malawian capital Lilongwe by private plane early on Wedn
Madonna in Malawi to adopt child, help orphans: Reuters NewMedia - October 4, 2006; Mabvuto Banda; LILONGWE - Pop diva Madonna arrived in Malawi on Wednesday to adopt an African child and fund an orphan center for 1,000 children, many of whom lost parents to AIDS. A fleet of cars and trucks specially flown in whisked the Material Girl and her entourage to an undisclosed location soon after their private plane landed
U.N. official wages personal AIDS fight in Angola: Reuters NewMedia - October 4, 2006; Zoe Eisenstein; LUANDA - Most mornings, Pierre-Francois Pirlot takes a brisk walk down Luanda s waterfront promenade. But unlike the dozens of others there whose aim is to get fit, he is out distributing condoms. Pirlot, the head of the United Nations Development Program in Angola , hands out up to 1,000 condoms during his hour-long c
Don't forget the killer diseases, experts urge: Reuters NewMedia - October 4, 2006; Tan Ee Lyn; HONG KONG - While every human death from bird flu commands widespread attention, some experts are urging the world not to forget killer diseases such as tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS, which claim millions of lives each year. More effort must be put into preventing these diseases, and vaccines -- once they are ready -- must
Aid to Africa rises, but millions still on edge: CARE: Reuters - October 2, 2006; Andrew Cawthorne; NAIROBI - Emergency aid to Africa has more than tripled in recent years, but more than 120 million people still live on the edge of emergency because of a lack of long-term solutions, CARE international said on Tuesday. Aid to tackle starvation, malnutrition and other immediate crises rose from 500 million pounds ($940
Shunned Indian HIV victims seek infected spouses: Reuters NewMedia - October 2, 2006; Rupam Jain Nair; SURAT, India (Reuters) - Dozens of Indian men and women infected with HIV/AIDS have agreed to marry each other after meeting at a special matchmaking event, hoping to end the isolation the deadly infection often brings. Thirty infected men and women from across the country met at the HIV+ Find a Life Partner session
Over 40 pct in EU take no AIDS precautions: poll: Reuters NewMedia - October 2, 2006; BRUSSELS (Reuters) - More than 40 percent of people in the European Union take no precautions against AIDS during sex, an EU survey showed on Monday. According to the poll, carried out in September and October of last year, fewer people in the 15 old member states said they practiced safe sex compared to the previous s
Many men who pay for sex have partners - UK study: Reuters NewMedia - October 2, 2006; LONDON - Nearly 50 percent of men in Scotland who pay for sex at home or abroad have a partner and the percentage could be greater, researchers said on Monday. One in 10 men questioned in a survey in Glasgow admitted that they had paid for sex recently and 27 percent said they repeatedly visited prostitutes. Approximat
Bristol-Myers, Gilead to sell HIV drug in Canada: Reuters NewMedia - September 28, 2006; NEW YORK - Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. (BMY.N: Quote, Profile, Research) and Gilead Sciences Inc. (GILD.O: Quote, Profile, Research) said on Thursday they have reached agreement to commercialize a three-in-one AIDS pill in Canada . ATRIPLA won U.S. approval in July, the companies said on Thursday.
India nearly doubles free AIDS treatment centres: Reuters NewMedia - September 28, 2006; NEW DELHI - India s state-run AIDS control agency said on Thursday it had nearly doubled the number of clinics giving free anti-retroviral drugs to tackle the fallout of the infection in the country with the world s most cases. Ninety-one centres were now operational from 54 about six months ago, and the number was exp
"Hateful" anti-gay law must go - Indian govt agency: Reuters NewMedia - September 27, 2006; Kamil Zaheer; EW DELHI - A British colonial era law in India that criminalizes homosexuality is not acceptable and scrapping it is fundamental to the fight against AIDS, the country s top official leading efforts to end the disease said. Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in jail for men havin
Sangamo says compound makes cells resistant to HIV: Reuters NewMedia - September 27, 2006; LOS ANGELES - A protein being developed by Sangamo BioSciences Inc. appeared in laboratory testing to make human immune system cells permanently resistant to HIV infection, the company said on Wednesday. Previously, the company had demonstrated only short-term resistance, said company spokeswoman Elizabeth Wolffe.
New SAfrican TB cases raise fears of wider outbreak: Reuters NewMedia - Wednesday, September 27, 2006; Sarah McGregor; JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - New cases of tuberculosis found in South Africa have raised fears there could be multiple versions of a highly drug resistant strain that has killed 62 people and threatens to spread across a region ravaged by AIDS. Health officials said on Wednesday the five new cases were discovered in Gauten
HIV "load" not indicative of AIDS progress: Reuters NewMedia - September 27, 2006; Measuring the amount of AIDS virus circulating in the blood of HIV-positive patients is not a good indicator of the health of their immune systems, researchers said on Tuesday. Physicians often assess the amount of HIV particles in the blood -- known as the viral load -- along with the decline in CD4 cells that help th
Kazakh doctors charged as fifth child dies with HIV: Reuters NewMedia- September 26, 2006; ALMATY - Prosecutors in Kazakhstan have charged eight doctors and senior health officials with criminal negligence over the infection of at least 61 children with HIV and the deaths of five, media and officials said on Tuesday. The health ministry confirmed the number of infected children had risen to 61 and said a fif
African broadcasters pump up the volume on AIDS: Reuters NewMedia - September 22, 2006; Sarah McGregor; JOHANNESBURG, Sept 22 (Reuters) - African television and radio stations are planning an on-air campaign in 24 countries to build hope and awareness in the face of the AIDS pandemic, which has hit Africa harder than anyplace else on earth. The aim is to restore confidence in young people who have developed a defeatist a
Smokers may have higher risk of HIV: Reuters NewMedia - Thursday, September 21, 2006; LONDON - Smoking, already linked to several illnesses, may also increase the risk of infection with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, researchers said on Thursday. In a review of studies that looked at the association between smoking and HIV, British doctors said five of the six studies they analysed showed smokers had
U.S. health body urges routine AIDS testing for all: Reuters NewMedia - September 21, 2006; Maggie Fox, Health and Science Correspondent; WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. government recommended near-universal testing for the AIDS virus on Thursday, saying too many people are missed by the current practice of focusing on people who seem to be at high risk. Nearly everyone aged from 13 to 64 would be screened under the new proposals issued by the U.S. Cente
Libya Foreign Medics Retrial Adjourned Again: Reuters NewMedia - September 21, 2006; TRIPOLI (Reuters) - The retrial of six foreign medics facing a possible death penalty on charges they infected hundreds of Libyan children with the AIDS virus was adjourned on Thursday after a defense lawyer failed to show up in court. The trial was postponed until October 31, said the court President Mahmoud Haouissa,
Five nations start fund to help poor overcome AIDS: Reuters NewMedia - September 19, 2006; Matthew Verrinder; UNITED NATIONS - Five nations launched an initiative on Tuesday to raise at least $300 million next year to buy generic drugs at steep volume discounts to fight AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria in developing countries. Leaders from France , Brazil , Britain, Norway and
Briton on AIDS drugs after bitten by S.Africa thief: Reuters NewMedia - September 19, 2006; JOHANNESBURG, Sept 19 (Reuters) - A British tourist in South Africa was forced to take anti-AIDS drugs after a robber bit his finger to steal his wedding ring. South Africa s News24 Web site said two British couples celebrating 30 and 35 years of marriage were attacked in the coastal city of Port Elizabeth and robbed o
S.Africa's Mandela gets top Amnesty Int'l award: Reuters NewMedia - September 19, 2006; JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Anti-apartheid icon Nelson Mandela will be awarded Amnesty International s Ambassador of Conscience award, the highest honor given by the global human rights watchdog, Amnesty said on Tuesday. More than any other living person, Nelson Mandela has come to symbolize all that is hopeful and ideali
S.Africa deputy president urges new spirit on AIDS: Reuters NewMedia - September 18, 2006; Andrew Quinn; JOHANNESBURG, Sept 18 (Reuters) -South Africa s deputy president called for a new spirit in the fight against HIV/AIDS on Tuesday, an apparent olive branch to critics of one of the most contentious government policies. Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, who also heads South Africa s National AIDS Council (SANAC), said acrimony ov
Negligence cause of Kazakh baby HIV cases-ministry: Reuters NewMedia - September 18, 2006; ASTANA, Sept 18 (Reuters) - Negligence in a blood transfusion centre led to the death of four babies in Kazakhstan and the infection of at least 55 children and one adult with the HIV virus, the Health Ministry said on Monday. The children, and a mother, have been infected in the past few months in a hospital in the so
AIDS biggest killer of S.Africa new mothers-study: Reuters NewMedia - September 18 2006; JOHANNESBURG, Sept 18 (Reuters) - HIV/AIDS is the biggest single killer of new mothers in South Africa , the Health Department said on Tuesday in a grim new statistic of the pandemic s toll on the country. The department released a study on maternal deaths from 2002-2004, illustrating a raft of problems with medical ca
AIDS no longer killing all patients, study finds: Reuters NewMedia - September 18, 2006; WASHINGTON (Reuters) - More than a quarter of New Yorkers infected with the AIDS virus are now dying of other causes, researchers said on Monday. An analysis of 68,669 New York City residents infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, found that of those who died between 1999 and 2004, 26.3 percent died of somethin
South Africa AIDS groups slam govt over TB outbreak: Reuters NewMedia - September 17, 2006; Sarah McGregor; JOHANNESBURG - South Africa s government long ignored warnings about drug-resistant tuberculosis, putting millions of HIV-positive people at risk now that a dangerous new strain of TB has emerged, AIDS activists say. South African officials have scrambled to react to news this month that extremely drug resistant tuberc
Leading Indians urge end of "monstrous" gay sex law: Reuters NewMedia - September 16, 2006; Mark Williams; NEW DELHI - Leading Indian writers, artists, lawyers and academics led by author Vikram Seth have written an open letter urging the government to overturn a British colonial era law that criminalises homosexuality. Condemning Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code as an attack on human rights and fundamental freedoms, it
Fast action needed to stop HIV among drug users: report: Reuters NewMedia - September 15, 2006; WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Countries where AIDS infections are growing among injecting drug users can and should act immediately to curb the spread of infection, a U.S. Institute of Medicine panel said on Friday. Treating addicts, giving them access to clean needles and syringes, and educational programs can all help reduc
Glaxo to supply cut-price AIDS drugs to Russia: Reuters NewMedia - September 15, 2006; LONDON (Reuters) - GlaxoSmithKline Plc, the world s leading maker of HIV/AIDS treatments, has struck a deal to supply cut-price AIDS drugs to Russia , it said on Friday. The move is the latest step by the pharmaceutical industry to offer discounted medicines to needy countries, following past criticism that it is more
Resistant TB case a wake up call for South Africa: Reuters NewMedia - September 14, 2006; JOHANNESBURG - South African officials said the spread of highly drug resistant tuberculosis to a Johannesburg hospital was a wake-up call to intensify work on defenses against the possibility of a deadly outbreak. The TB case, which emerged this week in South Africa s economic hub, has served as a reminder that the go
Bristol-Myers and Medivir in HIV collaboration: Reuters NewMedia - September 13, 2006; NEW YORK - Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. (BMY.N: Quote, Profile, Research) and Medivir AB (MVIRb.ST: Quote, Profile, Research) announced on Wednesday a collaboration to develop and commercialize MIV-170, a treatment for HIV-1 infection in adults as part of an antiretroviral drug regimen. The agreement includes an upfront p
Deadly strain of TB found in South Africa economic hub: Reuters NewMedia - September 13, 2006; Sarah McGregor; JOHANNESBURG - South African health authorities went on high alert on Wednesday after officials confirmed a case of a new, deadly strain of tuberculosis in Johannesburg, the country s economic hub. Officials said the case, a woman, had refused to stay in hospital -- stoking fears the TB strain could spread rapidly thro
India to ask young villagers to encourage safe sex: Reuters NewMedia - September 13, 2006; NEW DELHI - India plans to recruit one young man and woman from every large village in the country to over the next five years teach their peers about safe sex and HIV, a health official said on Wednesday. The army of young people would be part of India s frontline as it tries to slow the spread of the deadly virus, wh
Soros gives $50 million to tackle African poverty: Reuters NewMedia - September 13, 2006; NEW YORK - Billionaire financier George Soros pledged $50 million on Wednesday to help the United Nations tackle extreme poverty and AIDS in Sub-Saharan Africa. The money will be spent on the Millennium Villages project, which provides bed nets to stop mosquitoes that carry malaria, fertilizers to replenish depleted so
Chile polarized by easing of contraceptive rules: Reuters NewMedia - September 12, 2006; Lisa Yulkowski and Pav Jordan; SANTIAGO, Chile - A move to give teenagers public access to the morning-after contraceptive pill without parental consent has polarized Chilean society, with many saying it s a license for kids to have more sex. Chile, where abortion is illegal under any circumstance, announced last week that the morning-after pill w
South Africa seeks new drugs to fight deadly TB: Reuters NewMedia - September 12, 2006; Sarah McGregor; JOHANNESBURG - South Africa s health department has promised to start distribution as early as next week of a drug to help fight an extremely virulent strain of tuberculosis that has killed 52 people in the country. However, the government warned on Tuesday there was no guarantee the drug will save lives as it may prov
Libya HIV lawyers want $11 million payout per child: Reuters NewMedia - September 12, 2006; Salah Sarrar; TRIPOLI - Hundreds of HIV-positive Libyan children should each receive 15 million dinars ($11.6 million) in compensation, lawyers on Tuesday told a court retrying six foreign medics accused of deliberately infecting the children. It was the first time since the retrial of five Bulgarian nurses and a Palestinian doctor
India faces hard fight to beat AIDS in populous state: Reuters NewMedia - September 12, 2006; Kamil Zaheer; EKA, India - Sitting on a wooden bench under a slowly whirring fan, 43-year-old Prempal says he urgently needs anti-retroviral drugs to fight the HIV illness in his body. I just might die before I can start my treatment, Prempal said with a hysterical laugh as he waited in a doctor s consultation room in Eka, a small t
Zimbabwe's Mugabe offers talks, vows to stop protests: Reuters NewMedia - September 12, 2006; Cris Chinaka; HARARE - President Robert Mugabe s government said on Tuesday it was ready to talk with Zimbabwean unions over their social grievances, but renewed its vow to stop nationwide street protests planned for Wednesday. The opposition-allied Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) has called for the demonstrations to protes
HIV drugs best given to South African cities: Reuters NewMedia - September 12, 2006; Maggie Fox, Health and Science Correspondent; WASHINGTON - The most effective way to used AIDS drugs in South Africa would be to concentrate on cities, although this might also be the least ethical approach, an international team of researchers said on Monday. A computer model suggested the most efficient strategy for the country s plan to give triple-drug therapy
NY's gay baths become sex clubs of last resort: Reuters NewMedia - September 11, 2006; Matthew Verrinder; NEW YORK - Wearing just a small white towel and a smile, Bob prowls the dark halls of the East Side Club, looking into dozens of its closet-sized rooms and hoping eye contact with another man will lead to sex. It s better than going to a bar and taking your chances, said Bob, a 46-year-old garden supplies salesman from
New TB strain could fuel South Africa AIDS toll: Reuters NewMedia - September 11, 2006; Sarah McGregor; JOHANNESBURG - A highly drug-resistant strain of tuberculosis that has killed 52 people in South Africa is spreading, opening a deadly chapter in the country s HIV/AIDS crisis, medical experts said on Monday. Tuberculosis is an airborne illness that is particularly deadly for those with immune systems weakened by HIV,
China AIDS policy must be matched by enforcement: U.N.: Reuters NewMedia - September 11, 2006; Ben Blanchard; BEIJING (Reuters) - China has done a remarkable about-face in dealing with HIV/AIDS, but good intentions need wider implementation in a country where eight people become infected each hour, a top U.N. official said on Monday. Peter Piot, executive director of the United Nations AIDS agency
Red Cross fined $4.2 mln over blood safety: Reuters NewMedia - September 8, 2006; Lisa Richwine; WASHINGTON - The U.S. government fined the American Red Cross $4.2 million for failing to ask blood donors proper screening questions and skipping other steps meant to keep the blood supply safe, officials said on Friday. The fine, the largest ever levied by the Food and Drug Administration for a blood safety violation
South Africa health minister defiant on AIDS rebuke: Reuters NewMedia - September 8, 2006; JOHANNESBURG - South Africa s controversial health minister hit back on Friday at criticism of her unorthodox views on AIDS and stuck to views that traditional medicine can treat AIDS. More than 80 international scientists joined a campaign this week by a leading South African AIDS lobby group urging President Thabo Mb
Four babies die in suspected Kazakh HIV case: Reuters NewMedia - September 7, 2006; ASTANA - At least four babies have died in Kazakhstan following transfusion of blood suspected of being infected with the HIV virus, health officials said on Friday. The health ministry said 49 children aged from two months to 10 years have been infected over the past few months in a number of hospitals in the south of
WHO urges South Africa to curb TB killer super-bug: Reuters NewMedia - September 7, 2006; JOHANNESBURG - The World Health Organization urged South Africa on Thursday to act quickly to stamp out a highly-resistant (WHO) form of tuberculosis that has killed at least 52 people and could spread fast. The United Nations body said a response akin to recent global efforts to control SARS and bird flu was needed to
South Africa shrugs off calls to fire minister on AIDS: Reuters NewMedia - September 7, 2006; JOHANNESBURG - South Africa vowed on Thursday to step up its fight against HIV and shrugged off calls for the dismissal of its controversial health minister, who promotes garlic and lemon as a treatment for AIDS. More than 80 international scientists this week called for South African President Thabo Mbeki to fire Heal
Zimbabwe says HIV rate declines to 18.1 percent: Reuters NewMedia - September 7, 2006; HARARE - The number of of people infected with the virus that causes AIDS is down in Zimbabwe due to increased awareness but the country still has one of the highest HIV rates in the world, state media reported on Thursday. Health Minister David Parirenyatwa was quoted by the Herald newspaper as saying the government s
Pfizer looks to submit AIDS drug by year-end: Reuters NewMedia - September 7, 2006; Kim So-young; SEOUL - Pfizer Inc. (PFE.N: Quote, Profile, Research), the world s largest drugmaker, expects to register its HIV treatment maraviroc with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and other countries for approval by year-end, a top executive said on Thursday. It s in the final stages of clinical tests, Joseph Feczko, sen
Men's behavior a key goal in AIDS fight - hearing: Reuters NewMedia - September 6, 2006; Maggie Fox, Health and Science Correspondent; WASHINGTON - A controversial policy promoting abstinence education to fight AIDS may be the best way to get men to treat women better, which experts agree is key to battling the AIDS epidemic, U.S. government AIDS officials said on Wednesday. But a congressional investigator said a study found that the policy often con
AIDS experts demand South Africa's Mbeki fire minister: Reuters NewMedia - September 6, 2006; JOHANNESBURG - More than 80 international scientists, including a Nobel laureate, have appealed to South Africa s president to fire his controversial health minister for what they say are pseudo-scientific policies on AIDS. Calls for the dismissal of Health Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang for promoting alternative tr
India's HIV/AIDS infected seek law to battle bias: Reuters NewMedia - September 6, 2006; Kamil Zaheer; NEW DELHI - Hundreds of HIV-infected people in India are shedding inhibition and demanding justice against discrimination in the workplace and at home, a leading legal rights group said on Wednesday. But the lack of a specific law to protect millions of people living with the virus was hurting efforts to counter the bi
State requests delay in Zuma trial: Reuters NewMedia - September 5, 2006; Paul Simao; PIETERMARITZBURG, South Africa (Reuters) - Hundreds of chanting supporters hailed former South African Deputy President Jacob Zuma on Tuesday as a judge began hearings on whether his trial for graft should go ahead. The Zulu politician, fighting for his political life, entered court in the southern city of Pietermaritz
Libya foreign medics retrial adjourned: Reuters NewMedia - September 5, 2006; Salah Sarrar; TRIPOLI - The retrial of six foreign medics facing a possible death penalty on charges they infected hundreds of Libyan children with the AIDS virus was adjourned on Tuesday after a defence lawyer failed to show up in court. The court held a very brief session and swiftly postponed the trial to Sept. 12 because the law
Stigmatized Indian woman with HIV aborts own baby: Reuters NewMedia - September 4, 2006; Bappa Majumdar; KOLKATA - A pregnant HIV-positive woman was forced to abort her own fetus after staff in a hospital in eastern India refused to help her, officials said on Monday. In a separate incident in the region, an infected man was stoned by people who feared he might spread the virus. He later died of his injuries.
Paris names John Paul Square, angering AIDS groups: Reuters NewMedia - September 3, 2006; PARIS - Paris renamed the square in front of Notre Dame cathedral after Pope John Paul II on Sunday, angering AIDS groups and left-wing sympathisers, who protested against the move because of his strict line against condoms. Paris Mayor Bertrand Delanoe attended a ceremony to unveil a sign bearing the square s new name
Zimbabwe workers plan September 13 demo over salaries: Reuters NewMedia - September 3, 2006; Stella Mapenzauswa; HARARE - Zimbabwe s main labour federation said on Sunday it would hold demonstrations in major towns on Sept. 13 to protest against poor wages and workers lack of access to anti-retroviral drugs to fight HIV/AIDS. The Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions first warned of protests in May as its members struggled with infla
Delegates to Canada AIDS meet seek refugee status: Reuters NewMedia - September 1, 2006; OTTAWA - Almost 140 delegates to an international AIDS conference in Toronto last month have applied for refugee status in Canada , officials said on Friday. The federal immigration ministry said it could not confirm a report in the Toronto Sun newspaper which said most of the 137 refugee seekers were women from
Senator Obama ill-informed: Kenyan government: Reuters NewMedia - August 31, 2006; Tia Goldenberg; NAIROBI - Kenya on Thursday accused Senator Barack Obama, a rising star in America s Democratic party, of making inaccurate criticisms about corruption in the country of his father. Obama, who is a role model to many in the east African nation, on Wednesday ended what amounted to a homecoming tour during which he decla
Court asks why India missed 2005 AIDS drug target: Reuters NewMedia - August 31, 2006; NEW DELHI - India s top court asked the government on Thursday to explain why it had failed to meet its target of providing free drugs for 100,000 HIV-positive people by 2005 and on what basis it delayed the objective by two years. What s the difficulty? Why was the target year shifted? the three-member bench, headed b
Africa's health sector making some progress-WHO: Reuters NewMedia - August 30, 2006; ADDIS ABABA, Aug 30 (Reuters) - African countries are making steady progress in tackling some of the deadliest diseases, thanks to support provided by World Health Organisation (WHO) to its members, a senior health official said on Wednesday. The World Health Organisation and its 46-member states in the African region
Prosecutor seeks death penalty in Libya HIV case: Reuters NewMedia - August 29, 2006; Salah Sarrar; TRIPOLI - A Libyan prosecutor demanded the death penalty on Tuesday for five Bulgarian nurses and a Palestinian doctor on trial for the second time on charges that they infected hundreds of children with the HIV virus. The act was cruel, criminal and inhuman. It s a human catastrophe, prosecutor Omar Abdulkhaleq told t
Ethiopia's Meles urges more Africa health funding: Reuters NewMedia - August 28, 2006; ADDIS ABABA - Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi called on international donors on Monday to substantially increase funding to deal with health problems affecting millions in Africa. The magnitude of the challenge we face in the health area and the urgency with which the challenge needs to be addressed makes effecti
HIV drug stops cervical cancer in laboratory test: Reuters NewMedia - August 25, 2006; LONDON - A commonly used HIV medicine may also help prevent cervical cancer and could be developed into an anti-cancer cream, early laboratory tests by British scientists suggest. Researchers at the University of Manchester said on Friday that test-tube studies showed the drug lopinavir selectively killed hu
California lawmakers to allow condoms in prisons: Reuters NewMedia - August 24, 2006; SAN FRANCISCO - California lawmakers passed a bill on Thursday to permit condom distribution in the state s prisons, where the HIV infection rate is eight times higher than on the streets of Los Angeles. The bill now goes to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who has not yet taken a position on it, according to his office.
Gov't under fire as new AIDS protests hit S.Africa: Reuters NewMedia - August 24, 2006; Andrew Quinn; JOHANNESBURG - AIDS activists launched protests on Thursday demanding the dismissal of South Africa s health minister as a new study said the country faced as many as 9 million new HIV cases by 2025 if the crisis is not contained. The Treatment Action Campaign, nominated for a Nobel Peace prize in 2003 for its AIDS act
Indian MPs caught out on lack of AIDS awareness: Reuters NewMedia - August 24, 2006; NEW DELHI - Nearly two thirds of parliamentarians in India , which has the world s highest HIV/AIDS caseload, wrongly believe the virus can spread by sharing clothes with an infected person, a survey said. The poll of 250 MPs in India s lower and upper houses of parliament, roughly a third of the total, showed that 56
Theratech says FDA OKs design of HIV drug trial: Reuters NewMedia - August 23, 2006; TORONTO (Reuters) - Theratechnologies Inc. said on Wednesday the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has agreed to a design for a major clinical trial of a drug to combat a side-effect of taking anti-HIV drug combinations. In a statement, Montreal-based Theratechnologies said it had received a special protocol assessment
U.S. herpes infections decline, study finds: Reuters NewMedia - August 22, 2006; CHICAGO - The proportion of Americans with the herpes virus has declined, due perhaps to a curb in promiscuity among young people following earlier jumps in rates of infection, researchers said on Tuesday. While U.S. infection rates have declined 19 percent among 14- to 49-year-olds since the early 1990s,
US senator slams SA's Aids response: Reuters NewMedia - August 22, 2006; Gordon Bell; Barack Obama, the only black United States Senator, criticised South African leaders on Monday for their slow response to HIV/Aids, saying they were wrong to contrast African science and Western science . Aids activists say Health Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang is creating deadly confusion by pushing traditional med
S. Africa AIDS activists in court for protests: Reuters NewMedia - August 22, 2006; CAPE TOWN - Zackie Achmat, one of South Africa s top AIDS activists, appeared in court on Tuesday on trespassing charges after leading a protest against government policies to fight the disease. Achmat and dozens of Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) activists were arrested last week for demonstrating in a government buil
S. Africa's Aspen lifts profits on AIDS drug sales: Reuters NewMedia - August 21, 2006; JOHANNESBURG - Africa s biggest generic drug maker Aspen posted a 235 percent jump in headline earnings per share (EPS) to 185.5 cents, driven by rising sales in a range of products from milk formula to anti-AIDS drugs. Aspen said on Monday that ARVs, life-prolonging drugs taken by AIDS patients, would power growth in
U.S. Senator Obama says to get African HIV test: Reuters NewMedia - August 21, 2006; Gordon Bell; CAPE TOWN - Barack Obama, the only black U.S. senator, criticised South African leaders on Monday for their slow response to AIDS and said he planned to be tested for HIV while visiting Kenya later on his African trip. South African AIDS activists say Health Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang has created confusion by pu
South Africa Defends AIDS Policies: Reuters NewMedia - August 20, 2006; JOHANNESBURG - South Africa s health minister on Sunday defended her AIDS policies after a blistering attack by a top U.N. official, but newspapers said she had made the country a laughing stock and demanded her resignation. Manto Tshabalala-Mismang blamed South Africa s poor media coverage at last week s global AIDS c
AIDS conference closes with blast at South Africa: Reuters NewMedia - August 18, 2006; Maggie Fox, Health and Science Correspondent; TORONTO - South Africa s government remains obtuse and negligent in its approach to AIDS and should be denounced, researchers and diplomats said on Friday. Top speakers at the 16th International Conference on AIDS reserved their closing remarks for a long and detailed critique of South Africa and President Thabo Mbeki
Bangladeshi group shares international AIDS award: Reuters NewMedia - August 18, 2006; DHAKA - A Bangladeshi community group working to educate sex workers in the country shared an international award for its contribution toward prevention of HIV/AIDS. The Durjoy Nari Sangha distributes condoms, gives information about AIDS to sex workers, and provides for the education of their children. The newly launc
China arrests former chief of AIDS-plagued county: Reuters NewMedia - August 18, 2006; BEIJING - A former head of one of China s most AIDS-ravaged counties has been arrested for taking bribes, state media reported. Yang Songquan, former Communist Party secretary of Shangcai county in the central province of Henan, is accused of taking at least 100,000 yuan ($12,500) in bribes over a river treatment proje
African clerics ask for divine help in AIDS fight: Reuters NewMedia - August 18, 2006; Sarah McGregor; JOHANNESBURG - What would Jesus do about AIDS? The question has drawn together thousands of African Christians who are praying God will provide the solution to the epidemic devastating the continent. Organisers of the gathering in Johannesburg say it is time to start an active, faith-based campaign to fight AIDS, urgin
Drastic need for more AIDS health workers: meeting: Reuters NewMedia - August 18, 2006; Maggie Fox, Health and Science Correspondent; TORONTO - Drastic measures are needed to make sure there are enough health care workers to help treat and prevent HIV in Africa, where 25 million patients with the virus now live, the World Health Organization said on Friday. Lifesaving drugs for AIDS are available and more affordable, big donors are placing renewed em
S.Africa's ANC slams activists as AIDS row heats up: Reuters NewMedia - August 18, 2006; JOHANNESBURG - South Africa s ruling African National Congress (ANC) on Friday denounced activists it said had stormed the country s exhibit in Canada in a protest against government policy on the AIDS pandemic. South African newspapers widely reported the protest by members of the Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) who r
S.Africa AIDS activists arrested after protest: Reuters NewMedia - August 18, 2006; JOHANNESBURG - Dozens of South African AIDS activists were arrested on Friday after a sit-in protest at a government office in Cape Town demanding treatment for HIV infected prisoners. The arrests came as the ruling African National Congress (ANC) denounced activists it said had ransacked the country s exhibit in
Bangladesh worker angry at US AIDS help restrictions: Reuters NewMedia - August 17, 2006; Janet Guttsman; TORONTO - A U.S. loyalty oath that aims to curb prostitution and prevent sex trafficking has stymied one group s efforts to educate sex workers in Bangladesh and left thousands of women without support, a local activist said on Thursday. Her eyes filling with tears, Hazera Bagum said her group, Durjoy Nari Shangha, had
AIDS shortchanged when it comes to disasters: study: Reuters NewMedia - August 17, 2006; Natalie Armstrong; TORONTO - Deep pockets are not so deep when it comes to the AIDS epidemic, Canadian researchers said on Thursday. They released a study showing that for every person who died in the December 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, about $35,336 was donated, while $3,333 was given for every person affected by the disaster. For Hurri
Researchers aim to kick-start new AIDS preventions: Reuters NewMedia - August 17, 2006; Maggie Fox, Health and Science Correspondent; TORONTO - Delighted that prevention is finally at the front of the AIDS agenda, researchers backing microbicides and male circumcision cautioned on Thursday that they have years of hard work ahead of them before anyone will benefit from such methods. Activists urged the outside world to keep up the pressure on politica
Making condoms stylish for everyone: Reuters NewMedia - August 17, 2006; Natalie Armstrong; TORONTO - Condoms are very much in style as a fashion accessory at the International AIDS Conference in Toronto, showing up on strait-laced men, shy teenagers and African grandmothers. There s a great need to de-stigmatize condoms around the world, especially in Africa, said Franck DeRose, executive director of The Con
Bristol-Myers sending AIDS doctors to Africa: Reuters NewMedia - August 17, 2006; Cameron French; TORONTO - U.S. drug giant Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. is sending 250 pediatric doctors over the next five years to sub-Saharan Africa to fight HIV/AIDS, part of a growing push to target infants and children in the battle against the epidemic. The initiative is a joint venture with the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston
S.Africa's garlic, lemon AIDS advice draws new fire: Reuters NewMedia - August 17, 2006; Andrew Quinn; JOHANNESBURG - South Africa s drive to promote garlic, lemon and beetroot as AIDS treatments has fanned anger at home as activists accuse the government of misleading public opinion at a global conference on the epidemic. South Africa s exhibit at the Toronto AIDS conference -- featuring displays of garlic and other na
Zambia gets $155 mln to fight AIDS: Reuters NewMedia - August 17, 2006; LUSAKA - Sweden and the Netherlands will give Zambia a grant of about $155 million to fight AIDS and improve health services, a Swedish diplomat said on Thursday. Sweden s ambassador in Zambia Christina Rehlen said the Dutch would give Zambia around $79 million while Sweden would provide $76.
World Bank urges Thai model for AIDS prevention: Reuters NewMedia - August 16, 2006; Cameron French; TORONTO - Developing countries with few resources to fight AIDS could take their lead from Thailand s prevention programs of recent years, which have allowed it to provide nearly free drug treatments to patients, the World Bank said in a report on Wednesday. A former hot spot for the virus, Thailand has more than halve
Food a basic need in HIV fight: UN agency: Reuters NewMedia - August 16, 2006; Natalie Armstrong; TORONTO - Drugs are no good without food in the fight against HIV/AIDS in Africa, Asia and Latin America, and the essential role of proper nutrition has been forgotten, the United Nations World Food Program said on Wednesday. Organizers of the 16th International AIDS Conference marked a small victory with the announcem
Canada HIV/AIDS care falls short, advocates says: Reuters NewMedia - August 16, 2006; Cameron French; TORONTO - Canada s government-funded public health system falls short on timely and equal access to medicines for HIV/AIDS patients, a health advocacy group said on Wednesday. An unwieldy drug review process and a patchwork of federal, provincial and territorial drug reimbursement plans, each with different coverage st
Sex workers march for rights at AIDS conference: Reuters NewMedia - August 16, 2006; Maggie Fox, Health and Science Correspondent; TORONTO - Sex workers and their supporters from 21 countries marched on Wednesday through the 16th International AIDS Conference to demand their own place not only at the conference, but in their own societies. Wearing turquoise T-shirts, they marched from a gauze-draped bed in the Toronto conference s Stiletto Lounge,
More than 1 million in Africa get HIV drugs-report: Reuters NewMedia - August 16, 2006; Maggie Fox, Health and Science Correspondent; TORONTO - Ten times more people in Africa are getting life-saving AIDS drugs than just three years ago, but still most get no treatment and the pandemic continues to spread, the World Health Organization reported on Wednesday. A total of 1.04 million people in sun-Saharan Africa get the antiretroviral drugs that preven
India's Strides gets US nod for HIV tab nevirapine: Reuters NewMedia - August 16, 2006; MUMBAI - India s Strides Arcolab Ltd. (STAR.BO: Quote, Profile, Research) said on Wednesday it had received tentative approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for its HIV drug nevirapine in tablet forms. Strides also said U.S.-based Gilead Sciences Inc. (GILD.
Future promising for AIDS vaccine: group: Reuters NewMedia - August 15, 2006; Maggie Fox, Health and Science Correspondent; TORONTO - There is no vaccine against AIDS and none of the dozens of vaccines being tested is likely to completely protect people from the deadly virus, but the future looks bright for AIDS vaccine development, researchers said on Tuesday. Scientists will learn from the vaccines now being tested, and the developing wor
Male sex sending HIV out of control in Asia-group: Reuters NewMedia - August 15, 2006; Natalie Armstrong; TORONTO - AIDS is spiraling out of control in Asia among men who have sex with other men, activists warned on Tuesday -- and the epidemic is likely to spread because many of these men also marry or have sex with women. And because the issue of homosexual sex is taboo in many Asian cultures, these men are difficult to i
Former President Clinton defends Bush on AIDS: Reuters NewMedia - August 15, 2006; Maggie Fox, Health and Science Correspondent<