Early in the 1980s, a new disease emerged that suddenly claimed huge numbers of victims. It became known as AIDS. The deadly virus that causes AIDS is HIV. Originally it seemed to be a sexually transmitted disease (STD) that specifically affected homosexual men. But it was soon clear that men and women could catch it; and gay and straight. AIDS still has no cure, although drugs are available to slow its progress. In the Netherlands, HIV is mainly passed on through unprotected sexual contact. At first, because HIV is undetectable, people tended to avoid AIDS patients and exclude them. Since 1988, World AIDS Day has been held every 1 December: around the globe, people focus on the problems relating to AIDS and call for solidarity with those who have AIDS and HIV. s.