The first patients were under-nourished and immune suppressed from their lifestyle. Rampant drug use combined with risky behavior turned into berri-berri from internal damage and their body not able to get the needed nutrition. The particular drugs they were taking at their "get-togethers" were the worst pairing with the type of internal damage they were causing, it caused a depletion of life-needed nutrients.

They turned it into a "virus" that "anyone could get" and the false-positive tests fueled the plea for drugs (and a vaccine).