A long-acting injection to prevent HIV is set to be approved for use in England and Wales, offering a major new alternative to daily pills used for protection against the virus.
The treatment, cabotegravir (CAB-LA), is a form of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) administered every two months. It is designed for adults and young people at risk of HIV who cannot take oral PrEP, according to new draft guidance from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice). The injection is already available through the NHS in Scotland.
Health secretary Wes Streeting described the approval as “gamechanging.”
“For vulnerable people unable to take other HIV prevention methods, this represents hope,” he said. “England will be the first country to end HIV transmissions by 2030, and this breakthrough treatment is another powerful tool to reach that goal.”
The rollout is expected to begin about three months after Nice issues its final guidance later this year.
More than 111,000 people accessed PrEP in England’s sexual health clinics in 2024 — a 7% rise from the previous year, according to the UK Health Security Agency.
Helen Knight, Nice’s director of medicines evaluation, said the injection “offers an effective option” for around 1,000 people in England who cannot take daily PrEP tablets due to medical or personal barriers.
“HIV remains a serious public health challenge, but we now have powerful tools to prevent new infections,” she said.
Nice estimates that up to 1,000 people a year will benefit from the new treatment once approved.
