A groundbreaking HIV prevention injection, Cabotegravir (CABE), has received approval from the World Health Organization, offering new hope in the fight against HIV/AIDS in Africa.
South Africa, the country hardest hit by the disease, participated in the promising three-phase global study, making significant contributions to the drug’s development.
According to the study results, CABE demonstrated an impressive reduction of approximately 80% in HIV acquisition among both men and women. However, the most remarkable outcome was seen among women, with an unprecedented 98% reduction in HIV acquisition – the highest ever reported in any clinical trial for HIV prevention.
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South Africa, grappling with over 7 million cases, faces the highest HIV disease burden worldwide. The injectable form of CABE, administered every eight weeks, offers a significant breakthrough in HIV prevention. This advancement holds particular promise for adolescent girls and young women, who are most vulnerable to contracting HIV.
The availability of CABE may take some time as costs to the public sector are yet to be determined, and the global supply remains limited. Unlike oral pills, CABE is more complex to produce, posing challenges for large-scale production. However, experts remain hopeful that it will eventually be widely accessible to those in need.
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South Africa’s fight against HIV involves scaling up treatment literacy, resourcing, and access to prevention methods, such as pre-exposure and post-exposure prophylaxis, especially for key populations.
The approval of CABE is a significant milestone in the global battle against HIV. With the number of HIV cases in South Africa doubling over the past 20 years, the drug provides renewed hope to combat the disease that has been a global health issue for four decades.
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