With just one shot, the new injectable provides two months of HIV protection. An important step outside of clinical trials was taken earlier this month when a Cape Town citizen became one of the first users of the innovative HIV prevention injection, according to Spotlight.
The antiviral medication cabotegravir, also known as CAB-LA, is incorporated into the injection in a long-acting formulation. Nurse and research coordinator Pakama Mapukata remarked, “We were excited and nervous at the same time because (we) didn’t know how this person is going to react to an injection.”
Less painful HIV Prevention Injection
Mapukata continued by saying that the person responded favorably. The patient added that compared to earlier injections they had received for STIs, the CAB-LA shot caused them less pain.
Although the injection is not yet generally accessible to the public, a small number of people in the nation can have it through a number of test programs.
The FAST PrEP trial, spearheaded by the Desmond Tutu Health Foundation (DTHF) in Cape Town, is one among these projects. In a technical sense, the jab is only available to participants in the Prepare to Choose FAST PrEP sub-study.
Antiretrovirals are used in pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), which involves using tablets, vaginal rings, and injections to prevent HIV infection.
Selecting the Appropriate People
Five persons opted for the CAB-LA injection on the first day it was made available, according to social behavioral scientist Elzette Rousseau, the lead co-investigator on the FAST PrEP implementation team.
As that is the demographic that we would want to use our services and will profit from it the most, she added, “The first two that came through were a young MSM [men who have sex with men] and one was a young woman, which is definitely exciting.”
Nineteen CAB-LA injections had been given out in South Africa as of February 21.
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