AIDS Vaccine '04 Conference Announced

The AIDS vaccine 04 Conference (http://www.aidsvaccine04.org) has announced the program of the conference, which will take place in Lausanne, Switzerland, August 30 - September 1, 2004. The conference will examine the entire spectrum of issues in AIDS vaccine development and deployment, including the global effort in preventative and therapeutic vaccines, immunology, pediatric and adolescent vaccines, clinical trials in emerging countries and the need for strong political and financial commitment.

Due to an alarming increase in the number of HIV infections, which today affect some 30 percent of the active population in some countries, there is an urgent need for a preventative vaccine to end the HIV pandemic both in the developing and in the developed world, commented professor Giuseppe Pantaleo, conference chair. Developing a vaccine is a scientific challenge for a humanitarian cause. We hope that strong political and financial commitment will be a result of this conference.

The program will take place over three days, with plenary sessions, symposia and oral abstract sessions. The conference will begin on Monday, August 30th at 9:00 a.m. with an opening ceremony, featuring leading scientists Dr. Anthony Fauci and Dr. Rolf Zinkernagel, Swiss Minister of Health Mr. Pascal Couchepin, and the local Lausanne and Vaud authorities Mr. Daniel Brélaz and Mr. Charles-Louis Rochat.

The AIDS Vaccine 04 Conference will be attended by about 800 scientists and features the most significant advances in the field. The conference is co-organized by the Lausanne University Hospital (CHUV) and EuroVacc, a foundation registered in Switzerland whose mission is to develop a vaccine against human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and other agents of human infectious diseases. The foundation therefore promotes worldwide accessibility to the vaccines, develops appropriate infrastructure for carrying out vaccine clinical trials, develops technical and clinical platforms, promotes educational vaccine programs and generates financial resources to support fundamental and clinical research.

Source: Genevensis Healthcare Communications