South Africa’s fight against HIV has a powerful new weapon. Lenacapavir, a long-acting injectable medicine described as one of the most significant HIV prevention advances in years, has arrived in the country – and it asks for just two clinic visits a year.
Administered via injection twice a year, lenacapavir offers six months of continuous protection per dose, a welcome alternative to daily pills or two-monthly injections, SAnews reports. The first batch of 37 920 doses arrived in the country in early April.
Why six-monthly dosing matters
The Department of Health says the medicine’s six-monthly schedule has the potential to overcome many of the barriers South Africa has experienced with daily oral PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis). It offers greater discretion and convenience, and likely better adherence, especially for people who struggle with taking a pill every day or making frequent clinic visits.
The rollout is expected to expand prevention choices for the groups who need them most, including adolescent girls and young women, who have carried the greatest burden of the epidemic. The World Health Organisation recommends offering the injectable as an additional HIV prevention choice, and notes that it need not be discontinued during pregnancy and breastfeeding for HIV-negative women at high risk of exposure.
Registered, recommended and ready
The South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA) registered the antiviral in October 2025. A novel HIV-1 capsid inhibitor, lenacapavir is used to reduce the risk of HIV in adults and adolescents who weigh at least 35 kg, are HIV negative and are at risk of infection, starting with an initiation dose given just under the skin along with tablets on days one and two.
Health Minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi has said government plans to offer the medicine to young women and everyone at risk of HIV so they can stay HIV-free.
“To reach our goal of ending AIDS as a public health threat and achieve the UNAIDS target of 95% of people at risk having access to prevention options, we must continually improve and expand our prevention toolkit.”
A stronger toolkit for a healthier Mzansi
Lenacapavir joins condoms, daily oral PrEP and other options in an ever-growing prevention arsenal, delivered as part of integrated, people-centred HIV prevention services. SAHPRA advises that the injectable should always be used alongside safer sex practices such as condoms.
For a country determined to end AIDS as a public health threat, two small injections a year could make an enormous difference – offering new hope, more choice and easier protection to millions of South Africans.
Source: SAnews.gov.za
Photo: commons.wikimedia.org
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