The Lower Eastern Times Opening The Third Eye
Related Articles
The US Food and Drug Administration has approved a new drug to prevent the spread of HIV.
The long-acting drug, Lenacapavir, only needs to be used once every six months and its discovery chairman, Daniel O’Day, called the Food and Drug Administration’s leadership decision a historic one in the fight against HIV.
The approval comes as President Trump’s administration cuts funding to global health programs that would distribute the drug Lenacapavir in low-income countries.
Lenacapavir, sold under the brand name Yeztugo, has been shown to reduce the risk of HIV infection by more than 99.9 percent in adults and adolescents — making its performance comparable to a potent vaccine.
The drug’s efficacy was tested in two large trials. The first, involving more than 2,000 women in Africa, mainly in sub-Saharan Africa, resulted in a 100 percent reduction in infections and was shown to be superior to the daily pill Truvada.
In the second trial, involving more than 2,000 men and heterosexuals, only two infections were recorded – a protection rate of 99.9 percent, again exceeding Truvada.
