                     AIDS Daily Summary 
                       July 20, 1995

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) National AIDS
Clearinghouse makes available the following information as a public
service only. Providing this information does not constitute endorsement
by the CDC, the CDC Clearinghouse, or any other organization. Reproduction
of this text is encouraged; however, copies may not be sold, and the CDC
Clearinghouse should be cited as the source of this information.
Copyright 1995, Information, Inc., Bethesda, MD


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"Sneak Attack on AIDS Research"
"Mary Fisher's Message Goes to the Masses"
"Blood Stain: A Drug From Baxter Is Said to Have Posed a Risk of 
Hepatitis"
"Surplus Funds Not Used for AIDS Blood Tests"
"AIDS Focus of TD Insurance Battle"
"Dutch Government to Pay "Bad Blood" HIV Victims"
"Magic Johnson Says He Won't Play in NBA Again"
"Shionogi Beefs Up Drug R&D to Cure Ailing Performance"
"New TB Cases Drop; Local Programs Cited"
"Nevirapine: Ethical Dilemmas and Care for HIV-Infected Mothers"
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"Sneak Attack on AIDS Research"
New York Times (07/20/95) P. A23;  Baltimore, David;  Ho, David
     Sen. Jesse Helms' (R-N.C.) comments about federal AIDS funding 
caused a furor earlier this month, but a more menacing 
congressional attack on federal financing for AIDS research has 
largely gone unnoticed, write Nobel Prize winner David Baltimore 
of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and David Ho of the 
Aaron Diamond AIDS research center in the New York Times.  The 
House Appropriations Committee will vote today on a proposal that
would bar the National Institutes of Health from designating any 
funds for AIDS research.  If passed, this bill would effectively 
cripple the Office of AIDS Research, which was created by 
Congress two years ago.  Instead of admitting that AIDS is a 
national tragedy, Baltimore and Ho claim, many conservative 
leaders pretend not to see the enormous economic and emotional 
toll of the disease.  However, Rep. Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) seems 
to understand the situation, saying that politicians should 
"depoliticize research decisions about biology" and let 
scientists establish priorities.  If this bill is passed, the 
authors conclude, scientists will return to making individual 
discoveries about AIDS without a central plan for dealing with 
the disease.
      
"Mary Fisher's Message Goes to the Masses"
USA Today (07/20/95) P. 1D;  Painter, Kim
     Most of America met Mary Fisher three years ago, when she spoke 
about her life as an HIV-infected mother at the Republican 
convention in Houston.  "What shocked American was that a married
woman, in her early forties, with two nice children--a Republican
even...--had AIDS," Fisher said of her fame.  The wealthy 
daughter of a Detroit financier, Fisher has become a one-woman 
AIDS awareness campaign, speaking to groups that other AIDS 
activists might not.  One day, for example, she spread her 
message of inclusion and compassion to the staff of Sotheby's 
auction house.  On another, she spoke to the parents and students
at an exclusive girls school in New York.  In addition, Fisher is
completing a collection of artwork that will be displayed at a 
U.S. Senate gallery this fall.  Included in the artwork will be a
pine coffin on top of which Fisher has written, "Let us unite in 
life rather than in death."
      
"Blood Stain: A Drug From Baxter Is Said to Have Posed a Risk of 
Hepatitis"
Wall Street Journal (07/20/95) P. A1;  Burton, Thomas M.
     Baxter International, Inc. estimates that nearly 350 people have 
contracted hepatitis C from its intravenous drug Gammagard--for 
the treatment of immune deficiency--which was immediately removed
from the market.  Donald Tankersley of the Food and Drug 
Administration (FDA) believes that "there could be 1,000 
infections" resulting from Gammagard because some of the patients
may never have been tested for the hepatitis-C virus.  During the
1980s, when attention was focused on HIV and AIDS, blood product 
manufacturers did not pay much attention to hepatitis.  The chief
concern was about another blood-derived product for hemophiliacs.
Some in the industry thought that immune globulin was safe 
because it came from a cleaner "fraction" of blood plasma than 
did the drug given to hemophiliacs.  Other allegations include 
that Baxter neglected to include a virus-killing step in the 
manufacturing process; the FDA nonetheless approved the drug.  
Baxter substantiates this oversight on the basis that "our 
experience ... with immune globulin products demonstrated that 
the products on the market did not transmit the virus."
      
"Surplus Funds Not Used for AIDS Blood Tests"
Toronto Globe and Mail (07/19/95) P. A1;  Picard, Andre
     According to documents filed as evidence at an inquiry into 
Canada's tainted blood scandal, Canada's blood program ended up 
$4 million under budget in 1985, while the introduction of HIV 
testing was delayed for lack of approved funds.  The Canadian Red
Cross Society invested some of the surplus, but did not use the 
cash to accelerate the testing.  The agency's portfolio increased
from $16 million to $19.5 million in 1985.  The seven-month delay
is one of the main factors being investigated by the Commission 
of Inquiry on the Blood System in Canada, which is trying to 
determine the cause of the public-health disaster in which more 
than 1,000 hemophiliacs and transfusion recipients became 
infected with HIV.
      
"AIDS Focus of TD Insurance Battle"
Toronto Globe and Mail (07/19/95) P. B10;  Gibb-Clark, Margot
     Toronto-Dominion Bank and the owner of a bed-and-breakfast are 
involved in a dispute over mortgage insurance that was purchased 
by his partner before his death from AIDS.  After Nick DiCicco's 
death in February, just over a year after he had put a $200,000 
mortgage on the house, his partner and beneficiary David 
McKinistry applied to have the mortgage cleared and was rejected.
He remembers that when DiCicco applied for the insurance he 
asked, "Does anyone qualify? What if I had a terminal disease?"  
According to McKinistry, the loan officer said it did not matter 
because "it all goes into the pool."  The policy was underwritten
by Mutual Life Assurance Co. of Canada.  The bank was merely an 
agent.  Mutual Life officials said that when they received 
medical details of DiCicco's death, they noted that the 
application was not completed correctly and thus, declared it 
void.  McKinistry's lawyer said that when he looked at the 
application form after DiCicco's death, there was a mark in a box
indicating that the applicant did not have AIDS or any of several
other diseases.  DiCicco's initials, however, were not beside the
mark, though similar forms bear the initials of the applicants 
involved.  He suggested that the policy was miswritten, so the 
bank should be responsible for it.
      
"Dutch Government to Pay "Bad Blood" HIV Victims"
Reuters (07/19/95)
     The Dutch government has announced that it will compensate all 
hemophiliacs who became infected with HIV after receiving tainted
blood or blood products.  Health Minister Els Borst said that all
HIV-infected hemophiliacs could expect as much as $129,000 in 
compensation.  "We accept that the government is to blame on 
certain points; let's now talk about an adequate financial 
response," she added.  Borst also acknowledged criticism that the
Dutch government was slow to adopt measures, such as 
heat-treatment, that would kill HIV in blood and blood products. 
About 170 Dutch hemophiliacs became infected with the virus that 
causes AIDS before 1985, after which time blood was screened for 
HIV.  Thus far, approximately 30 have died of AIDS.
      
"Magic Johnson Says He Won't Play in NBA Again"
Reuters (07/18/95)
     Basketball legend Earvin "Magic" Johnson said on Tuesday that he 
will not return to play in the National Basketball Association 
(NBA).  Johnson, who retired from pro basketball after learning 
he was infected with HIV said he realized his "future is in 
business and not playing in the NBA."  Since he left the 
basketball, Johnson has played in NBA All-Star games and has 
toured Europe and Asia with his exhibition team, the Magic 
All-Stars.  In addition, the former Los Angeles Laker recently 
opened a multi-screen movie theater in South Central Los Angeles,
and said his company intends to build similar theaters in 
Atlanta; Washington, D.C.; New York, and Chicago.
      
"Shionogi Beefs Up Drug R&D to Cure Ailing Performance"
Nikkei Weekly (07/03/95) Vol. 33, No. 1678, P. 10;  Endo, Shigeru
     Shionogi & Co., one of Japan's largest pharmaceutical makers, 
suffered during the early 1990s.  Sales were stagnant, and its 
research and development unit had missed a critical market shift 
away from antibiotics.  Now, however, Shionogi President 
Yoshihiko Shiono has successfully initiated the company's first 
major overseas expansion and brought in new talent for the 
research division.  Although his strategy is risky, Shiono has 
produced a potential anti-AIDS drug and a joint venture with 
pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly & Co. to show for his efforts.  
The anti-AIDS drug, which was announced last April, is the first 
indication of the success of Shiono's plan. The drug will be in 
clinical trials for at least five years before it can join the 
short list of other drugs, such as AZT, that inhibit the spread 
of HIV.  Shionogi is also investing in a number of research 
projects, including a gene therapy laboratory which will search 
for cures for such diseases as AIDS and cancer.
      
"New TB Cases Drop; Local Programs Cited"
American Medical News (07/17/95) P. 21
     According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 
(CDC), there were 24,361 new cases of tuberculosis (TB) in the 
United States in 1994--down nearly 4 percent from the previous 
year.  Last year marked the second year of decline after an 
eight-year increase.  The reduced number of cases is the result 
of increased state and local prevention and control programs, 
said CDC director David Satcher.  Between 1985 and 1992, new 
cases jumped 20 percent, an increase that is attributed to 
cutbacks in control programs, the rise of AIDS, increased 
immigration from nations where TB is prevalent, and the 
development of drug-resistant strains of the disease.
      
"Nevirapine: Ethical Dilemmas and Care for HIV-Infected Mothers"
Focus (06/95) Vol. 10, No. 7, P. 5;  Benson, Mindy;  Shannon, 
Maureen
     For many women, zidovudine (ZDV, AZT) therapy is not a viable 
option to reduce maternal-fetal HIV transmission.  The Pediatric 
AIDS Council Trial Group, therefore, has continued to develop 
other trials that might offer a reduction of perinatal 
transmission.  The AIDS Clinical Trial Group (ACTG) 250 protocol,
for example, is now determining the safety and pharmocokinetics 
of nevirapine--a non-nucleoside HIV reverse transcriptase 
inhibitor.  Thus far, three studies have indicated the drug's 
ability to dramatically reduce HIV viral burden.  The short time 
to resistance, however, makes nevirapine an unlikely candidate 
for long-term therapy.  Several of the nine ACTG 250 sites offer 
care, as well as opportunities to participate in clinical trials.
Many of the perinatal sites, however, do not require trial 
participation in order to receive care.  The staff at these 
locations face ethical dilemmas that blur the lines between 
clinician and investigator, and pose conflicts of interest.  For 
instance, a client may feel obliged to enroll in a trial please 
the clinician-investigator.  The clinician-investigator must 
remain an objective interpreter of scientific data as well as a 
supportive advocate for women facing reproductive and treatment 
dilemmas.
      
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