Will a cure for AIDS be found in your lifetime?

(Edgard Garrido/Reuters)Updated Dec. 20: The search for a cure for AIDS may have taken an important next step today, according to Canadian researchers at the University of Western Ontario. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the first trials of a vaccine that prevents HIV.

The vaccine "has the potential to save the lives of millions of people around the world by preventing HIV infection," said Dr. Chil-Yong Kang, a researcher and professor at Western's Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry.

Original post, Dec.1: Worlds AIDS Day is today, serving as a reminder that the fight against the deadly disease is ongoing and important.

First conceived by two public information officers at the World Health Organization in 1988, the day was meant to raise awareness about AIDS, the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome triggered by a virus called HIV.

In addition to celebrating triumphs in AIDS research, World AIDS Day is also a way for people to remember people who have died as a result of the disease and show support of those living with AIDS.

There have been several victories to celebrate in the fight against AIDS - including some radical research now being done in Canada. But it cannot be denied that the hunt for a cure has been elusive, and must continue.

About 33 million people worldwide are living with HIV/AIDS -- two-thirds of them in sub-Saharan Africa, according to a 2010 report by the United Nations. An increasing number are receiving treatment, but there is no vaccine as yet.

U.S. President Barack Obama sounded a note of optimism at a World AIDS Day event in Washington Thursday.
 
"We can beat this disease," Obama declared, then announced a renewed American commitment to ending the pandemic. He also pledged to boost spending on HIV treatment in the U.S. by $50 million.

Do you believe a cure for AIDS will be found in your lifetime? Why or why not? What more could we be doing, or could governments be doing, to combat AIDS? Share your comments below.

(This survey is not scientific. Results are based on readers' responses.)