Guardian

Most new HIV infections occurred outside sub-Saharan Africa for first time – UN report

A drug described as "the closest we have ever been to an HIV vaccine" that currently costs over $40,000 per a person per a year, could be made to cost less than $40 for each patient, researchers said on Tuesday.

Early trials have found, Lenacapavir, developed by US pharmaceutical company Gilead, to be nearly 100 percent effective in preventing HIV infection. The drug is also easier to administer than current preventative regimens that require daily pills, with Lenacapavir needing only two injections per year.

Medicalxpress

Lenacapavir is already approved as a twice-yearly antiretroviral treatment for people with multi-drug resistant HIV, though recent trials have focused on using the drug as a  pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP to prevent HIV in people at a high risk for contracting the disease.

Forbes

New research, presented by Andrew Hill, a researcher at the UK's Liverpool University, at the International AIDS Conference in Munich on Tuesday, estimates that Lenacapavir could be produced for as much as 1,000 times less than the current price if Gilead allowed for cheaper generic versions of the drug to be manufactured.

Advocates have urged Gilead to allow for generic licensing through the UN-backed Medicines Patent Pool in all low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), where the majority of HIV infections take place. A similar system, where wealthier countries pay higher prices for HIV treatments than poorer countries has existed for decades.

Gilead has said that it is still too early to predict the price for Lenacapavir for use as a PrEP, though the company has pledged to create "a strategy to enable broad, sustainable access globally”.

HIV ‘vaccine’ could be made for just $40 a year per patient

HIV ‘vaccine’ could be made for just $40 a year per patient

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HIV ‘vaccine’ could be made for just $40 a year per patient

HIV ‘vaccine’ could be made for just $40 a year per patient

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