South Africa: With Over 3,600 Western Cape Users, Lenacapavir Is 'Cool'
[spotlight] From counselling about small nodules to overcoming people's fears of needles, Spotlight takes the pulse of a new HIV prevention injection's rollout in the Western Cape.
In the Western Cape, the lenacapavir HIV prevention injection has gained traction, with over 3,600 users as of 23 August. The injection, which lasts six months, is administered at 22 government clinics in the province. Olwam Plaatjie, a 20-year-old from Crossroads, switched from the two-monthly cabotegravir injection to lenacapavir despite developing small nodules at the injection sites.
Plaatjie expresses her satisfaction with the new HIV prevention medicine. The high uptake in the Western Cape is attributed to the large population of adolescent girls and young women in the area, who are targeted in the roll-out strategy. The first cohort of 15- to 35-year-olds received lenacapavir jabs in February as part of a study led by the Desmond Tutu Health Foundation to evaluate implementation strategies and encourage continued use.
Men have also started to embrace the injection, as they find it easier than daily oral PrEP tablets.
Written by urgent.news from AllAfrica Health's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
