[Letter to Colleagues from Peter Duesberg]

9
Alternatively, one could hold to the figure 20,000 per year
and present the comparison on a yearly basis, but some
transparent way of citing just how this number was obtained
must be devised.
Now finally, this reviewer is not happy with the quoted
number of 10% of the adult population being considered
"homosexual." First of all ref 57 is not the best one to
use. The section of ref 57 that deals with this subject is
Fay et al. in press, Science 239. Well it was finally
published as Fay,RE, Turner,CF, Klassen,AD, and Gagnon, JH.
Science 243, 338-348 (1989). These au's specifically state
that the best numbers that they can come up with are "1.6 to
2.0% of US male population has had one or more male contacts
within the previous year" (see Abstract and their Table 7).
Is it realistic to classify as "homosexual" for purposes of
the AIDS inquiry as anyone who has had any male:male
contact? It would seem to this reviewer that at least one
contact during the past year should provide the number for
the denominator to the 20,000 AIDS cases.
Presuming that the author's number of 80 million is
correct (better check!) for the total adult male population,
then replacing the 10% by the 2% number from Fay et al, we
must reduce the 8 million to 1.6 million, thereby increasing
the author's 0.25% to 1.25% This is still a very low number
and apparently it has been stable over the past three years.
Most homosexuals in the US (as defined) do not and will
probably never get AIDS. This is not readily reconciled
with a new sexually transmitted infectious agent, which HIV
is postulated to be (13). This reviewer agrees with that
statement.
Now the author has a transitional problem: he has just
built the case that most homosexuals will not get AIDS, and
now he plans to talk about their additional risks. Clearly
a transitional sentence is required; this reviewer suggests:
While most homosexuals do not get AIDS diseases, some
do, and they represent more than 59% of the cases (15, Table
3). Therefore it is reasonable to ask: "What other risks
are homosexual males subject to?."
p8 11 "Indeed, a study by the CDC from 1987 lists..."
It would be smoother to say:
"A 1987 study by the CDC lists numerous other
categories of AIDS risks factors in a group of 359
homosexual-men from San Francisco (58)."
p8 line 3-10 Here are some excellent observations that

support the idea that this group consumed a pharmacy of.
drugs and had been infected with about every venereal