{"id":98804,"date":"2025-07-01T15:27:04","date_gmt":"2025-07-01T13:27:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/?p=98804"},"modified":"2025-07-01T15:27:04","modified_gmt":"2025-07-01T13:27:04","slug":"long-acting-hiv-prevention-injection-brings-new-hope-but-access-remains-a-concern","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/long-acting-hiv-prevention-injection-brings-new-hope-but-access-remains-a-concern\/","title":{"rendered":"Long-acting HIV prevention injection brings new hope, but access remains a concern"},"content":{"rendered":"

Neelam Rahim | neelam@radioislam.co.za<\/a> <\/em><\/p>\n

3-minute read
\n01 July 2025 | 14:18 CAT<\/p>\n

\"\"

\ud83d\udcf8 A game-changing jab: MSF rolls out long-acting HIV prevention across Africa.<\/p><\/div>\n

A long-acting injectable to prevent HIV could be a revolutionary step in curbing infections across Africa, but concerns remain about access and funding. Doctors Without Borders (MSF) has begun rolling out CAB-LA, a two-monthly injection offering protection against HIV, in some of the hardest-hit regions, including Eswatini, where HIV remains the leading cause of death.<\/p>\n

Speaking to Radio Islam International,<\/em><\/a> MSF\u2019s Djoki Joseph Bahati said: \u201cThis could be a game-changer, CAB-LA has proven highly effective in trials and offers people a private, discreet method of protection freeing them from the daily pill burden.\u201d<\/p>\n

While oral PrEP has been available for years, stigma and adherence challenges have limited its success. \u201cOral PrEP packaging often resembles HIV treatment, so people fear being mistaken for living with the virus,\u201d Bahati explained. \u201cThe daily routine is also difficult to maintain, especially for women facing gender-based restrictions and judgment.\u201d<\/p>\n

CAB-LA circumvents these issues, requiring just one injection every two months. \u201cIt reduces social risk, enhances privacy, and supports better adherence,\u201d said Bahati. He also highlighted the recent approval of another long-acting option, Lenacapavir, a biannual injection. \u201cImagine that just two injections per year. These tools could truly change the face of HIV prevention.\u201d<\/p>\n

But while science is advancing, funding is faltering. Bahati warned that global HIV initiatives face \u201can earthquake of uncertainty,\u201d particularly due to possible U.S. cuts to PEPFAR, the world\u2019s largest HIV\/AIDS program. \u201cPEPFAR has enabled countries like Eswatini to test, treat, and prevent HIV. With these cuts, we\u2019re already seeing decreased testing, limited PrEP delivery, and shrinking prevention efforts. If not urgently addressed, this will reverse decades of progress.\u201d<\/p>\n

For CAB-LA and other innovations to work, Bahati stressed one point: \u201cThey must reach those at greatest risk. Without equitable access, especially in low- and middle-income countries, we risk widening the gap.\u201d<\/p>\n

As the tools to end HIV grow more sophisticated, the world must ensure no one is left behind. \u201cThe science is here,\u201d Bahati concluded. \u201cNow, the question is whether we have the political will and global solidarity to follow through.\u201d<\/p>\n

Listen<\/strong> to the full interview on The Daily Round-Up<\/em><\/a> with Annisa Essack and MSF\u2019s Djoki Joseph Bahati.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Neelam Rahim | neelam@radioislam.co.za 3-minute read 01 July 2025 | 14:18 CAT A long-acting injectable to prevent HIV could be a revolutionary step in curbing infections across Africa, but concerns remain about access and funding. Doctors Without Borders (MSF) has begun rolling out CAB-LA, a two-monthly injection offering protection against HIV, in some of the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":29,"featured_media":98805,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[28,4997],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-98804","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-latest-news","category-world"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/CAB-LA.jpg?fit=310%2C163&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pc0QIf-pHC","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-04-15 18:15:46","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/98804","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/29"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=98804"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/98804\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/98805"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=98804"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=98804"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=98804"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}