A.I.D.S Virus Link (Press, 7 June 1983)
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Summary: A.I.D.S Virus Link (Press, 7 June 1983)
On 7 June 1983, a report emerged from Sydney concerning Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS), which is linked to approximately 500 deaths. Jane Teas, an American researcher from Harvard School of Public Health, suggested in a letter published in the April issue of the medical journal "Lancet" that there might be a connection between AIDS and a human strain of the African Swine Fever Virus (ASFV). Teas highlighted the significant similarities in geography, symptoms, and timing between Haitian cases of ASFV and those of AIDS, indicating that these parallels warrant further investigation. AIDS remains a perplexing disease for medical researchers due to its pronounced prevalence among homosexual men. The disease is characterised by a prolonged incubation period, potentially lasting up to three years, during which no symptoms may manifest. However, once contracted, it can lead to sudden, severe infections that compromise the body’s natural defence mechanisms. Consequently, sufferers become vulnerable to various infections, acutely pneumonia, and certain tumours. In Australia, four suspected cases of AIDS have been reported, one of which remains unverified. Teas pointed out that approximately 75% of individuals diagnosed with AIDS were male homosexuals, while the remaining 25% included individuals who had received blood donations, intravenous drug users, infants of known or suspected AIDS patients, or people from Haiti. Teas drew an intriguing parallel between the emergence of AIDS in Haiti in 1978 and the first noted occurrence of African Swine Fever Virus in the same location in 1979. Although ASFV has not previously been known to infect humans, Teas posited that the strain present in Haiti could potentially be different, necessitating closer examination.
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