Health News
New HIV/AIDS Medication
July 13, 2006
The United States government has approved the first ever combination therapy (3 in 1) pill for HIV/AIDS patients.
The new 3 in 1 pill will allow patients to take one pill once a day, rather than multiple does of multiple pills. The most positive benefit if the combination treatment is that patients will be less likely to forget to take their medication. Medication non-compliance is often the most common reason for treatment failure.
The new product combines an anti-viral drug called Sustiva, made by Bristo-Myers Squibb, with another two-drug pill called Truvada, produced by Gilead Sciences. All three drugs inhibit the replication of HIV in the body.
Nearly 40 million persons are currently living with HIV and AIDS, the majority of them in poor nations in Africa and Asia. Nearly 3 million died of the disease last year, according to UNAIDS. Approximately 40,000 Americans are infected with HIV each year, and 1 million are estimated to be living with the disease.
Eric Miller, a spokesperson for Sustiva maker Bristol-Myers Squibb, said the new product would sell for a wholesale price of $1,150.88 for a 30-day supply.