Big news: the FDA just approved lenacapavir for PrEP under the brand name Yeztugo, a twice‑yearly injection that clinical studies show gives around 99% — basically near‑100% — protection against HIV. It’s a new class of drug called a capsid inhibitor, which stops the virus from uncoating and copying itself, and it already had been approved in 2022 (as Sunlenca) for treating people with HIV.
This could actually change the PrEP game: one shot every six months solves so many problems people have with daily pills — missed doses, clinic stigma, the whole thing. Scientists and experts are calling it transformative, and Science even named lenacapavir a 2024 Breakthrough Invention, since the outcomes in trials have been really promising.
Gilead’s also trying to make sure it reaches people who need it: they’ve licensed it royalty‑free to generic manufacturers for 120 mainly low- and lower‑middle‑income countries, partnered with the Global Fund to supply enough doses for up to two million people at no profit over three years, and are filing for approvals in lots of other countries while offering US access programs for uninsured folks. The Global Fund warns we’ll need real resources and delivery systems to actually get it to people on the ground, but this is a huge step toward ending the epidemic.