In the early eighties, medical researchers did not have a clear idea about the origins of AIDS or its spread. They believed that it could be triggered by a sexually-transmitted virus. In particular, they knew that many of the patients had sexual intercourse with one another, but they could not explain why this disease was widespread in the gay community. So, they could not confirm this hypothesis. Furthermore, they assumed that it could be caused by a combination of causes such as the mutation of already-existing viruses. There are several reasons that can explain why the cause of this epidemic was not discoverer as soon as possible.
First of all, the government of the United States did not want to spend money on the research because the HIV virus allegedly affected only homosexuals. It should be noted that at that time, many of the officials were prejudiced against the gay community. This is why medical workers could not make any progress for a long time. Furthermore, there was very little cooperation among researchers and medical institutions. For example, the CDC investigators could not get access to the information about donors who could transmit the HIV virus. Finally, researchers from various countries did not share their findings with one another while searing for the virus. These are the main obstacles that can be identified.
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