Today is World AIDS Day, a reminder that the threat of HIV is still with us. More still needs to be done to check the spread of the virus and prolong the life expectancy of AIDS patients.

Latest statistics from the Ministry of Health reveal that roughly 44,000 new HIV infections were reported in the country by the end of October this year and the total number of reported AIDS patients and people living with HIV was more than 370,000 by October.

The fact that AIDS-related deaths reached 68,000, with 26,000 in 2009, implies that the country has reached the high point of the curve when most AIDS patients who were infected a decade ago or even earlier are counting their last days. Yet, this by no means suggests that our efforts to prolong the life of those infected have been in vain. The drugs we have developed have improved the life quality of such patients and made it possible for them to live longer.