The "Lazarus effect" is a phrase coined by doctors and relief workers in Africa to describe what happens to AIDS patients after they start receiving antiretroviral medicines.

On Sunday, churches around the world read from the Gospel of John and heard the story of Lazarus, in which Jesus raised his friend Lazarus from the dead, as part of Lazarus Sunday.

The ONE campaign, an advocacy group co-founded by the rock star Bono to help alleviate poverty and fight AIDS in Africa, hoped the metaphor would carry on to their project to get people more involved in AIDS advocacy.

http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2011/04/11/explaining-the-lazarus-effect/