“Scientists yesterday hailed a potential breakthrough in the fight against Aids after a vaginal gel was found to cut HIV infection rates by up to 50 per cent. The gel, which was tested on high-risk women in South Africa, contains the Aids drug tenofovir. It was found to halve HIV infection rates after one year of use, and after two and a half years of use still resulted in a 39 per cent fall in infections. If the results are confirmed it will be the first time that such a gel has been shown to be effective.”