Drugmaker Gilead said it will allow the sale of low-cost versions of its AIDS vaccine in 120 poor countries with high rates of HIV, mostly in Africa, Southeast Asia and the Caribbean.
That vaccine was 100 percent effective in preventing HIV infections in a study in women, and results released Wednesday show it worked nearly as well in men. It has been called the closest the world has ever come to a vaccine against AIDS.
A drug called lenacapavir is already sold under the brand name Sunlenca to treat HIV infections in the US, Canada, Europe and elsewhere. The company plans to apply soon for a license to use the drug to prevent HIV.
While there are other ways to protect against infection, such as condoms, the pill, vaginal rings and twice-monthly shots, experts say Gilead's twice-yearly shots would be especially helpful for marginalized people who are often afraid to seek care, including gay men, sex workers and young women.
"This is so superior to any other prevention method we have that it is unprecedented," said Vini Bjanjima, director of the Joint UN Program on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS). She praised Gilead for developing the drug but said the world's ability to stop AIDS depends on its use in at-risk countries.
In a report released to mark World AIDS Day on Sunday, UNAIDS said the number of AIDS deaths last year, an estimated 630.000, was the lowest since its peak in 2004, perhaps indicating that the world is now at a "historic crossroads " and that it has a chance to end the epidemic.
In a statement, Gilead said it has "an ongoing commitment to help provide access to HIV prevention and treatment where the need is greatest." Among the 120 countries eligible for the generic version are 18 mostly African countries that account for 70 percent of the world's HIV burden.
Gilead said it is also working to establish "rapid, effective pathways to reach all people who need or want lenacapavir for HIV prevention."
On Thursday, 15 advocacy groups in Peru, Argentina, Ecuador, Chile, Guatemala and Colombia wrote to Gilead, demanding that the vaccine be made available in Latin America, citing an "alarming" disparity in access to drugs and HIV prevention tools on the continent where infection rates are rising the fastest.
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