Report: AIDS epicenter shifting, 100 million HIV cases possible by 2010

A report released Monday by the National Intelligence Council, a group that advises the CIA, State Department, Defense Department, National Security Council, and other government agencies, claims that the epicenter of the AIDS epidemic is shifting away from sub-Saharan Africa to such populous nations as India, China, Russia, Nigeria, and Ethiopia, The Washington Post reports. It also warns that the number of HIV cases in the world could hit 100 million by 2010. That number is nearly double the estimate made by the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS.

Although some AIDS experts question the projections, Richard Feachem, director of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria, called the report "right on target." He added, "Paying attention to these large next-wave epidemics is extremely important and has been a neglected subject in the international debate."