When Is Enough Enough? argues that AIDS gets too much attention compared to other diseases:
Although AIDS cases and deaths are declining and the disease remains completely preventable, it nonetheless gets almost $180,000 in research funds per death from the National Institutes of Health. Compare that to its closest rivals: Parkinson’s disease, prostate cancer, and diabetes. All of these receive about $14,000 per death. Alzheimer’s gets about $11,000.
I’d prefer a metric more like dollars per lost year. A disease or accident that takes you at 25 is more destructive than one that takes you at 70 rather than 80.