Step 1: Picture the natural history of untreated HIV: an acute phase, then a prolonged asymptomatic latency, and finally AIDS once CD4 cells fall far enough. The whole span averages around a decade.
Step 2: The standard board figure for this incubation-to-AIDS interval is about 10 years, with the median quoted near 9 years in adults. Among the choices, 10 years is the one matching this teaching.
Step 3: Outliers exist - long-term non-progressors and elite controllers stay well far longer - but they are uncommon and do not redefine the average. The neighbouring values of 7.5, 11 and 12 years are simply not the conventional answer, so 10 years stands.\[\boxed{\text{10 years}}\]