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via The Australian (11/23/05):
AIDS toll soars past 25 million
David Nason, New York correspondent
THE number of people with HIV worldwide has exceeded 40 million for the first time, with more than 2.6 million adults and almost 600,000 children dying from AIDS in the past year.
The figures, released at UN headquarters in New York, reveal the relentless rise of HIV infection, which leads to AIDS. It has now claimed more than 25million lives since the early 1980s, making it one of the most destructive epidemics in history. The vast majority of cases are in the developing world.
The report, by the Joint UN Program on HIV-AIDS and the World Health Organisation, estimated there would be an extra 5 million infections globally this year. Only a handful of countries have made serious efforts to stop HIV infection, the annual report said.
Worldwide, less than one in five people at risk has access to basic prevention services and only 10 per cent of people with HIV have been tested and made aware of the infection. [read on...]
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