September 16, 1985
Dear Dr. Varmus:
Thank you for your letter of August 12, 1985 regarding the question of an appropriate name for the retrovirus believed to be the cause of AIDS.
The question was discussed at our St. Paul's Hospital AIDS Care Group meeting.  The individuals attending this meeting consist of the group of consultants, family physicians, nurses and other staff who provide the in-patient and out-patient care for 2/3 of the patients with AIDS is our province.  It was the opinion of the group that a name including the term AIDS was acceptable and appropriate.  We wondered about the possibility of the name AIDS-associated retrovirus or ARV.
We hpe that our opinion is of some help to yourself and the sub-committee of the Retrovirus Study Group.  We will follow the matter with much interest.
Yours sincerely,
Linda Rabeneck, M.D.