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Despite the international community's best efforts- the HIV pandemic continues unabated. In 2007, 33.2 million people were living with HIV worldwide. About 2.5 million people became newly infected with HIV and an estimated 2.1 million lost their lives to AIDS.
The 2006 NACO estimates suggest national adult HIV prevalence in India is approximately 0.36 percent, amounting to between 2 and 3.1 million people. If an average figure is taken, this comes to 2.5 million people living with HIV and AIDS; almost 50 percent of the previous estimate of 5.2 million.
On average, people require life-saving antiretroviral treatment (ARVs)
7-10 years after becoming infected. While there has been recent progress in increasing access to treatment and prevention programs, HIV continues to outpace the global response with at least 70% of those in clinical need of ARVs worldwide not receiving them. Further, while decline in national HIV prevalence has occurred in for example some sub-Saharan African countries, these trends are not strong or widespread enough to have a major impact on the epidemics.
New technologies to prevent HIV transmission remain imperative. IAVI estimates that the potential positive impact of AIDS vaccines would be enormous, especially in the developing world.
There is scientific progress underway in the search for an HIV vaccine. Presently, there are more than 30 clinical trials with HIV vaccine candidates worldwide.
With nearly 7,000 people becoming newly infected with HIV each day, accelerating the timetable towards a vaccine must be a global health and development priority of the highest order. Join us in imagining a world without AIDS.
The Potential Impact of an AIDS Vaccine
Scientists are working hard to develop a vaccine to prevent HIV. It is likely that the first generation of successful HIV vaccines will offer some form of protection, but they will not be entirely protective (as no vaccine is 100% effective). Future generations of a preventive HIV vaccine will become increasingly more effective over time as scientific knowledge improves.
Even partially effective vaccines could make a difference by:
- protecting some vaccinated individuals against HIV infection;
- reducing the probability that a vaccinated individual who later becomes infected will transmit the infection to others; or
- slowing the rate of progression to AIDS for those who later become infected with HIV.
IAVI estimates that – even assuming that other programs for treatment and prevention have been scaled up – an HIV vaccine could substantially alter the course of the AIDS pandemic and reduce the number of people newly infected, even if vaccine efficacy and population coverage levels are relatively low.
New adult HIV infections in low- and middle-income countries by year and vaccine scenario (The introduction of a vaccine at 2015 was chosen for illustrative purposes. A vaccine is not guaranteed by 2015.)
An AIDS Vaccine Could Have an Enormous Effect
The world has committed to providing universal access to AIDS prevention, treatment and care; but unless we can alter the number of people who become infected, the costs of treatment and care will mount into the tens of billions of dollars, even before considering rising drug resistance and the associated need for more expensive alternative drugs. Moreover, these costs must be met every year for the foreseeable future.
But some groups could especially benefit from an HIV vaccine, particularly marginalized and vulnerable populations, including women who often have the least access to prevention, care, and treatment services. The challenges in reaching these underserved populations underscore the importance of making investments in HIV vaccine research and development today.
The negative effects of the AIDS pandemic are substantial, in terms of lives lost, human suffering, shattered families and communities, lowered economic productivity and higher health care costs. A vaccine that could reduce the number of new infections by 20% to 80% would produce enormous health and economic benefits and could help to dramatically curtail the pandemic.
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