Activists valiantly fought for early access to these drugs. The commitment of these brave souls has prolonged the lives of many and continues to bear fruit, albeit sometimes bitter. Keeping the Context Missives from the misguided duo aside, accounts from within our ranks further muddy the waters. But, as Martin Delaney of Project Inform points out, higher prevalence rates can be misleading. In some studies anyone with elevated cholesterol or middle-age paunch is included in the tally.
Studies using more demanding criteria show vastly lower rates.
An over-zealous, insatiable press fed our hunger and desperation at the '96 World AIDS Conference in Vancouver, anointing David Ho our savior and Time Man of the Year. His eradication theory, taken as gospel, was faithfully preached with missionary fervor. Denouncing Ho a heretic, the media is ever intent on destroying the icon it created. Yet the tide is turning. Dr. Keith Henry, medical director of the HIV Clinic at Regions Hospital in Minnesota, argues in the most recent issue of Annals of Internal Medicine that, with the twilight of the eradication hypothesis, the utility of early therapy is becoming increasingly suspect.