THE HIV virus is a hidden killer responsible for millions of deaths in the poorest countries of the world.

The scale of devastation and suffering caused by the virus is a human tragedy - yet it can appear to be a human tragedy occurring elsewhere.

We see the pictures on the TV news of suffering in far away countries or, if we look closer to home, we imagine such a deadly infection being linked to metropolitan areas, not this part of the world - yet, shockingly, that is far from being the truth.

Statistics from the Health Protection Agency show that Yorkshire and Humberside has seen the largest proportional rise in HIV diagnoses in the whole of Britain, with a rise in five years from 577 cases to 1,686.

As well as geographical distance, it is possible to put other barriers between ourselves and this most feared infection. Many people still believe that HIV and AIDS are confined to two communities, drug users and homosexuals.

Yet the latest statistics reveal that the rise in cases of infection affect both heterosexual and homosexual men and women. In North Yorkshire, the ages of those affected range from 24 to 76, although there has been a worrying rise in young referrals in the county.

Somewhere along the line, since the original sombre health education campaign with its doom-laden tombstone motif, we have forgotten about the dangers of HIV, especially the risks of having unprotected sex.

It is time to reiterate the vital advice about using condoms - and to wonder if sex education at schools is what it should be. Young people need to get the message about sexual health.

This problem isn't far away - it is right here, right now. And no one can afford to be complacent.

Updated: 10:58 Monday, December 05, 2005