Lenacapavir: could new HIV drug help end the pandemic?
Recent trials found the drug protected young women with a twice yearly injection
Africa Daily · BBC World Service
Audio is streamed directly from the publisher (open.live.bbc.co.uk) as published in their RSS feed. Play Podcasts does not host this file. Rights-holders can request removal through the copyright & takedown page.
Show Notes
“That will be a miracle on its own because when I started taking ARVs I began with 20 tablets.”
In June, the US drug company Gilead announced that a trial of its HIV drug Lenacapavir had got a 100% success rate.
The drug - a twice-yearly injection – can be used to protect people from catching the virus, but also to treat those who have it.
But the question of pricing remains – with people in poor countries unable to afford the current price tag of $40,000 per person per year. One analysis has suggested it could be mass produced as a generic drug for about $40 per person per year.
In this episode of Africa Daily podcast Peter Musembi speaks to Dr Moupali Das who oversees the development of HIV prevention drugs at Gilead – and also gets reaction with two people living with HIV.