FDA Approves New HIV Treatment Pill

The US Food and Drug Administration announced that the United States has approved a new HIV treatment combination drug.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — The United States has approved a new HIV treatment combination drug, Genvoya, for adults and teenagers, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced in a statement.

“Today’s approval of a fixed dose combination containing a new form of tenofovir provides another effective, once daily complete regimen for patients with HIV-1 infection,” Director at the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research Edward Cox said on Thursday.

The new HIV pill will provide a lower level of the drug tenofovir in patients’ bloodstream but a higher level of the drug in cells where the HIV-1 replicates, the FDA said, adding that it should reduce side effects.

Before approving the new drug, Genvoya was tested on some 3,171 participants in four clinical trials, which found that the drug could reduce “viral loads” compared to other treatments.

About 1.2 million people in the United States are infected with HIV, while some 150,000 people likely being unaware they have the disease, the US Centers of Disease Control and Prevention estimates.