An innovative HIV prevention drug administered intramuscularly is now available in Ukraine. This therapy, based on long-acting cabotegravir (CAB-LA), is intended for people at high risk of HIV infection.
The drug was provided to Ukrainians as part of an international partnership under the PEPFAR program (the US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief).
In the context of the pilot project, long-acting cabotegravir will be available to most at-risk patients in two medical facilities in Kyiv and Lviv. The registration procedure for the drug is currently underway.
In 2022, the World Health Organization included this drug in its recommendations for pre-exposure prophylaxis. Before that, on December 20, 2021, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved it.
Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and antiretroviral therapy (ART) are among the key means of controlling the risk of virus transmission and reducing HIV-related morbidity and mortality among people living with HIV.
