Health Journalism 2011: Experts dubious about an HIV vaccine

The public will not see any HIV vaccine or its human trial in the near future. This is the disappointing message that a panel of experts concluded at Health Journalism 2011 on April 16.

In the 1990s, when HIV was discovered, scientists were optimistic that a preventive vaccine would be developed soon to end the HIV pandemic, just like it was for polio. However, 30 years later, with the failure of the Thai trial and more understanding of the characteristic of the virus, doctors have realized that they are nowhere near that elusive goal.