| | Words in the News |
INTRO | | Thailand announced the first trial of an AIDS vaccine in the developing world. Two-and a-half thousand Thai drug users will take part in the four-year scheme. We heard from BBC Correspondent Claire Doole and from Sam Avrett, Executive Director of the U.S. Aids Vaccine Advocacy Coalition. |
IN FULL | |  | Listen to the report in full |
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11th February 1999
Testing an AIDS vaccine
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| NEWS 1 | | The Thai project to test two-and a-half thousand volunteers over the next four years with an AIDS vaccine is an important step towards developing an effective means of fighting AIDS . It's the first large-scale human testing programme in the developing world, where the majority of HIV cases occur. [The Californian Company, VaxGen, which began a large-scale trial in the United States last June, is funding the nine-million dollar Thai scheme. The first results of both trials will be known in the next two to three years. (Claire Doole) |
WORDS | | over the next four years: over this period of time - during the next four years ( see 'in the next two to three years' below ) large-scale: in this context 'large-scale' means involving a lot of people in the next two to three years: before the end of this period of time scheme: here it means a formal, official plan on a large scale |
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| NEWS 2 | | I think in the developing world we need treatments that are more affordable and more accessible , and we need an HIV vaccine that can have the same impact on the HIV epidemic as vaccines have had on polio, smallpox and other diseases. (Sam Avrett) |
| WORDS | | affordable: if something is affordable it means that you have enough money to be able to pay for it accessible: if something is accessible to people, they are able to use it easily vaccine: a substance containing a harmless form of the germs that cause a disease. The vaccine is given to people to prevent them getting the disease |
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| NEWS 3 | | Costs, ethical concerns and lack of scientific results have stymied progress worldwide. Only eleven percent of the world aid budget is spent on vaccine research. Campaigners hope the large-scale human trials will encourage greater investment and lead to the development of a safe and effective vaccine against HIV early in the next decade. (Claire Doole) |
| WORDS | | ethical: influenced by a set of moral beliefs about right and wrong concerns: a concern is something that is important to you, and it can also imply worry about a thing or situation stymied: this is an informal word. If something stymies you, it makes it difficult or impossible for you to take action |
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| | | Read about the background in BBC News Online |
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