Articles in this Special Edition

HIV: Progress in Prevention Erin Clark	Graphic Intervention: 25 Years of International AIDS Awareness Posters Leila Ross	Malaria: An Old but Pressing Problem Catherine Merrick
NTDs: Diseases of the bottom billion Karolina Maciag	Nadia Cohen	Tuberculosis: The Enduring Global Reaper Gairik Sachdeva
Dengue Fever: Brewing Trouble in the Tropics Ann Fiegen

Words from the Editors

Next year, 2011, will mark the 30th anniversary of the discovery of AIDS. Since the beginning of the global pandemic, AIDS has claimed more than 25 million lives. While both the number of new cases and number of deaths have begun a downward trend in the past decade, it is estimated that still more than 33 million people in the world are living with the HIV virus, and most are concentrated in the world’s most impoverished regions. Much still needs to be done to alleviate the immense human suffering from this disease.

But AIDS is not the only infectious disease that is taking such a huge toll on humankind. Tuberculosis and malaria, together with HIV/AIDS, or “the Big 3”, led to 4 million deaths in 2004, and caused more than a tenth of all deaths in developing nations. Equally in need of attention, however, are a group of 17 diseases, caused by various bacteria, viruses and worms, that together afflict a billion of the world’s poorest and most isolated people. These “neglected tropical diseases” (NTDs) are out of sight from much of the developed world, and consequently, understanding of these diseases and development of medical interventions for them have lagged behind. The first report by the World Health Organization on NTDs, published this year, both highlights the great necessity for more research and funding for these diseases, and offers a glimmer of hope that the long neglect may finally be over.

To coincide with World AIDS Day on Dec. 1st, 2010, this special edition of the SITN Flash focuses on the theme of infectious diseases, with articles covering both the Big 3 and NTDs. In addition, we report on an AIDS-themed exhibition at the Massachusetts College of Art and Design, “Graphic Intervention: 25 Years of International AIDS Awareness Posters.” It was also our honor to conduct an interview with Ms. Ellen ’t Hoen, executive director of the Medicines Patent Pool, which is an initiative to obtain licenses from groups holding patents on anti-HIV drugs and products, in order to facilitate greater access to essential medicines for those most in need in the developing world. This is the first time that the Flash has compiled such a multi-article special edition, and with this, SITN hopes to both inform the public of the suffering caused by some of the most debilitating and deadly diseases, the science behind these illnesses, and to raise awareness about the research and funding needs in the global efforts to defeat these diseases.

We would like to thank all the writers who contributed to this special issue, as well as the editors who helped make this happen: Janice Ahn (Harvard Graduate School of Arts and Sciences), Catherine Merrick (Harvard School of Public Health), and Rosa Yoon (Harvard Medical School). Special thanks to Natasha Sunderji (Harvard Kennedy School) for facilitating the interview with Ms. ’t Hoen.
Johnny Kung (Harvard Medical School) Managing Editor
Jess Porter Abate (Harvard Medical School) Editor-in-Chief

Happy Reading!
Flash Editorial Staff