Health & biology · 1987
AZT, first HIV drug
Zidovudine became the first approved treatment for HIV, just four years after the virus was identified.
HIV was identified in 1983; the FDA approved AZT in March 1987. Alone it offered limited benefit, but it proved antiretrovirals could slow the virus.
What it built on 1
What it led to 1
Related measurements
The dashed line marks when it first worked.
Life expectancy at birth Latest: 73.2 years (2023) Source: Our World in Data