Today is World AIDS Day. I didn't even know. Until, of course, I was listening to NPR's Day to Day.
On today's program, they replayed the very first NPR report ever delivered concerning the emergence of a disease we now know is caused by HIV. It was broadcast during Morning Edition on July 3, 1981 (wow... I wasn't even 1 yet). The report concerns an unusual outbreak of Kaposi's Sarcoma (a rare form of cancer that, at the time, had was only known to occur among older African men) among 28 young gay men in the United States. The report doesn't at all mention HIV (which, of course, had not yet been discovered). Terms like "AIDS" and even "GRID" (Gay-Related Immunodeficiency Disease... an early term for AIDS) did not even exist yet. It's quite a sobering report to hear.
"...The gay community shouldn't be overly alarmed about Kaposi Sarcoma, but young men suffering from unusual fevers and small, bluish skin nodules should see a physicain immediately. In the meantime, the CDC will be watching Kaposi's closely."
Hearing such a history certainly gave me pause today.
Posted by James at December 1, 2004 01:12 PM