AIDS: Male circumcision could be even greater boon than thought

by Staff Writers Mexico City (AFP) Aug 7, 2008 Circumcision appears to offer men even greater protection against the AIDS virus than thought and also partially shield them against a common sexually-transmitted disease, two studies presented at the world AIDS conference said Thursday. US researcher Robert Bailey of the University of Illinois at Chicago put forward long-term data from a trial in Kisumu, Kenya, that in its initial phase enrolled 2,784 uncircumcised uninfected men. Half of the group were circumcised, and the others were circumcised at a later date and they were later tested for HIV. Previously-published research from this trial found that, after two years, circumcised men were 59-percent less likely to contract the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) than uncircumcised counterparts. The benefit was so astonishing... [read full story]