Experts Advise On The Timeline For The Lenacapavir Injection

Experts researching the  on the new HIV prevention drug have advised on the timeline for the Lenacapavir injection, specifying how long a person must wait after receiving it before they can safely reunite with their partner.

Uganda received 19,200 doses from the Global Fund, and the injection was launched in March of this year in Lira  targeting 103 government health facilities across the country first to reach those most at risk of contracting the HIV virus. According to Dr. Flavia Kiweewa, one of the lead researchers on this drug from Makerere University Johns Hopkins says  anyone who receives this injection must strictly adhere to a specified timeframe—either 48 hours or 28 days—for the drug to start working effectively before they can resume sexual relations with their partner, as she explained. "This preventive injection works for those without HIV who are in a relationship with someone who has it, and it is administered twice a year, six months apart." Although in developed countries this drug is combined with other medications to treat people living with HIV, in Uganda this particular type of drug has not yet been approved for treatment, as she clarified. Moses Nsubuga, also  known as Supercharger, is one of the Ugandans who came out publicly to declare that he is living with HIV.  He says he has been with his HIV-negative wife for 12 years, and they have HIV-negative children.  He states that this injection is a huge ray of hope in the fight against HIV/AIDS and appeals to the government to increase efforts in its distribution and related awareness campaigns. Regarding  the consortium of those most at risk of contracting HIV, Dr. Miccah Kulubya says it is still early days since the injection was introduced, but it has already helped many people in stigma fights and adherence efforts . He appeals to development partners and the government to provide additional funding. Currently, experts are continuously brainstorming daily to see if they can develop an injection that can also be administered to people already living with HIV, in order to save them and reduce the burden of taking daily oral medication. Research into the Lenacapavir injection began in 1998, but it was only approved in 2022, with Uganda being one of the African countries implementing this regimen.  Other countries include South Africa, Nigeria, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Kenya, Lesotho, Mozambique, and Eswatini.