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Innovation in Long-Acting Prevention Is the Future of HIV: Antonio Urbina, MD
Although a cure is likely still a ways off, continuing to pursue long-acting injectable treatments and PrEP is key to reducing cases of HIV.
Antonio Urbina, MD, the medical director for the Mount Sinai Institute for Advanced Medicine 7th Avenue clinic in New York City, believes that, as HIV prevention and treatment continue to evolve, long-acting injectable options for pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and treatment may be the key until a cure is found.
This transcript has been lightly edited for clarity; captions are auto-generated.
Transcript
Where will the HIV space evolve in the coming years?
I think what we're seeing is innovation in terms of treatment. Again, I think these longer-acting modalities are even going to be tweaked even further so that we can have once-annual treatment. There are currently trials underway for once-annual PrEP, so 2 intramuscular injections that last a year. Similarly, with treatment, what we're seeing is that the current iteration Cabenuva [cabotegravir] is every 2 months, but we're currently doing trials looking at every 4 months. Again, I think this is really exciting, because for patients that are having difficulty, remember the 33% that are not virologically suppressed, maybe these longer-acting modalities can help them to get there. But I think the holy grail that everybody is still very much wanting is a cure. We know that there are current trials that are going on and that there are some newer studies and technology, but I think still cure is elusive, and I still think that's the holy grail, and we're not quite there just yet.
