BEIJING - Gay and bisexual men account for around one in every three new cases of HIV in China, according to the latest official statistics released by the Ministry of Health.

About 5 percent of the group - officially termed men who have sex with men, or MSM - are living with the virus, which is a rate that is 88 times higher than the national HIV prevalence rate of 0.057 percent.

The problem is particularly acute in large urban centers, with the prevalence rate in some southwestern cities reaching almost 20 percent.