New drug provides HIV hope

A “WONDER drug” could help the government afford to put even more HIV patients on antiretroviral treatment and reduce the sideeffects of sufferers already on ARVs.

South Africa has almost 3.5 million people on treatment – the highest number in the world.

But despite having the cheapest ARVs in the world, at R1 000 a year per state patient, costs are mounting.

Now, Wits Professor Francois Venter said ahead of World Aids Day on Thursday the new drug, Dolutegravir, would be a way to drop the prices of HIV treatment even lower and reduce the number of people who become resistant to HIV.

The drug is already under trial in the country.

Dolutegravir could replace Efavirenz, an ARV with well-documented side-effects, in the government’s triple combination ARV regimen.

And because it will be a lower dosage ARV, it would be cheaper to produce.

Venter said Dolutegravir was used in the US by most HIV-positive patients and there was not one recorded case of resistance to it.

Wits Professor Ian Sanne said South Africa would be spending R6-billion a year on antiretroviral treatment by 2020.

Sanne called Dolutegravir a wonder drug.

Aspen Pharmacare has the licence to manufacture the drug but is yet to apply to get approval from the Medicines Control Council to make a combination drug with it.

Aspen senior executive, Stavros Nicolaou said the only way to drop ARV prices was to use Dolutegravir because less of it was needed than the drug it would replace.

The triple combination ARV would require 50mg of Dolutegravir versus 600mg of Efavirenz.

“The last time there was a similar situation it took five years to resolve at the Medicines Control Council,” Nicolaou said.

“This time we hope to have treatment in 2018.

“It depends on the regulator.”