Science and technology
科學與技術
The fight against AIDS
對抗艾滋病
HIV's slow retreat
艾滋病的緩慢退卻
One of the world's worst plagues is giving ground
抗擊艾滋病:顯現曙光
THE timing of the pope's much-discussed change of position on the use of condoms to prevent the spread of HIV was surely no coincidence.
近期羅馬教皇改變了其對于使用避孕套以防止艾滋病傳播的立場,引來一片議論。這個時間絕非巧合。
He made it on November 21st—ten days before World AIDS Day and two before UNAIDS, the United Nations body charged with combating the epidemic, released its latest report on the state of the battle.
他是本月21日向外界宣布的—恰逢世界艾滋病日前十天,也是在兩天后,負責抗擊艾滋病的聯合國機構—聯合國艾滋病規劃署發布了其最新的艾滋病防治工作報告。
That report carries good news.
這份報告帶來了好消息。
Though some 33m people are infected, the rate of new infections is falling—down from 3.1m a year a decade ago to 2.6m in 2009.
縱使艾滋病毒感染人數已達3300萬,但新增感染者的速度正在放慢—從十年前的每年感染310萬人降至2009年的260萬人。
Moreover, as the map shows, the figure is falling fastest in many of the most heavily infected countries, especially those of sub-Saharan Africa and South and South-East Asia.
此外,從這張地圖上可以看出,正是那些感染最嚴重的國家新增感染者的速度下降最快,尤其是撒哈拉以南的非洲國家以及南亞、東南亞國家。
The reason is a combination of behavioural change, a big reduction in mother-to-child transmission at birth and during breast-feeding, and the roll-out of drug treatment for those already infected.
此中原因是多方面的:包括性行為方式的改變,母嬰分娩傳播與哺乳傳播的大幅減少,以及已感染者對毒品的戒除。
Besides prolonging life, anti-HIV drugs make those taking them less likely to pass the virus on.
抗艾滋藥物除了可以延長生命,還可降低服用者將病毒向他人傳播的幾率。
More than 5m people in poor and middle-income countries are now on such drugs, though Michel Sidibe, the head of UNAIDS, says another 10m could benefit.
超過500萬來自貧困或中等收入國家的艾滋病患者正在服用這種藥物,即使這樣,據聯合國艾滋病規劃署的負責人Michel?Sidibe說,仍有超過1000萬人需要這種藥物。
The problem, as always, is money.
資金不足始終是個問題。
Dr Sidibe reckons the fight needs about $25 billion a year to be fully effective.
Sidibe博士認為,抗擊艾滋病每年大約需250億美元方可全力維持。
At the moment, the sum spent is around $17 billion.
但現在最高的年支出只有約170億美元。
Not a bad fraction of the desideratum, but one that will be hard to sustain in the face of the world's economic difficulties.
與總需求相比這還不算太糟,但在全球經濟面臨困境的當下,想維持這一水平卻又是個難題。