A twice-yearly injectable drug can prevent HIV infection The injectable Sunlenca is even more effective than the oral pill Truvada, research shows For many people, it's easier to receive a shot twice a year than to take a daily pill THURSDAY, Nov. 28, 2024 (HealthDay News) -- People whose partners have must remember to take antiretroviral pills every single day or risk infection themselves. But researchers have come up with a way to avoid that daily hassle – an injectable drug that patients would only have to receive twice a year.
What’s more, the new drug works even better than the currently available pills, clinical trial results show. A twice-yearly injection of (lenacapavir) reduces the risk of HIV infection by 96%, which is significantly more effective than oral pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) using pills like , researchers report in the . “Seeing these high levels of efficacy – at almost 100% -- in an injectable that people only have to take every six months is incredible,” lead researcher , a professor of medicine at Emory University, said in a news release.
“This is a considerable and profound advancement in medicine, especially for people whose circumstances don’t allow them to take a daily oral medication, and for those among populations disproportionately impacted by HIV,” she added. In the new clinical trial, 99% of the patients receiving Sunlenca did not become infected with HIV, results show. There were only two infections among 2,179 people taki.