Acquired Immuno-deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) is potentially fatal disease caused by HIV virus. AIDS renders our body defenseless against any and every infection in the world by killing the immune system.

The currently available treatment - highly active anti-retroviral treatment (HAART) is very effective in giving people a few more decades to live. However, HAART has 2 major problems:

1. It is not a cure and the medications have to be taken lifelong
2. The side effects of treatment at times may be as bad as cancer chemotherapy

Therefore, it is of imperative importance that we find a cure for this deadly disease which is safer (ideally without side effects) and does not need to be taken over a protracted period of time.

Mortality data of HIV/AIDS in the world and US:

Video: BLOODLINE: AIDS and Family is a short documentary movie by Kristen Ashburn and takes an intimate look at the harsh reality of the AIDS pandemic in Africa (available for online viewing on Mediastorm Project website).

Video: HIV 101 - This is a 10 minute video explaining HIV and AIDS (YouTube Link)

Tuberculosis is treatable and preventable. Inadequate treatment in many countries is leading to the emergence of extremely drug resistant tuberculosis (XDR-TB) for which there is no effective treatment available. XDR-TB in most cases leads to death within weeks of diagnosis making it deadlier than any cancer (in which survival is measured in months and not weeks).

This photoessay by James Nachtwey captures the horrors of this deadly disease.

More research is needed for prevention of TB. We need better vaccines to prevent transmission. BCG vaccine is minimally effective in preventing pulmonary infection and moderately effective against disseminated infection.

Sadly the best drugs for treatment of TB are the ones we have been using for many decades. We may have made enormous advances in all other fields of medicine but in the last several decades we have added very little to our clinical armamentarium to fight tuberculosis.

If the current situation continues XDR-TB may be the next pandemic.

Links: CDC, XDR-TB