A ribbon symbolizing the fight against AIDS surrounded by candles, in Nepal in 2018. -
Sunil pradhan / SOPA Imag / SIPA
A new breakthrough in the fight against HIV.
Unitaid announced on Tuesday a new treatment for HIV positive children in developing countries.
More suitable, it is also four times cheaper.
The price of this new treatment, which includes a new component truly adapted to the specific needs of children, increases from 480 to 120 dollars per year, after an agreement with the generics manufacturers Viatris and Mcleods, said a spokesperson for the. international organization hosted by the WHO on the occasion of the World AIDS Day.
Only half of the children are treated
"Long-awaited, anti-HIV treatment specifically for children will finally be available in low and middle income countries, thanks to an agreement between UNAIDS and the Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI)", underlines Unitaid.
Around 1.7 million children around the world are HIV positive, but only half of them receive treatment and 100,000 die each year, the organization said.
Many children are not treated because of the lack of access to easy-to-take and appropriate medicines, she stresses.
The agreement with Viatris and Mcleods makes it possible to reduce the price of one of the components of the cocktail used to contain HIV to 36 dollars against 400 previously.
This is dolutegravir (DTG) which is considered a first-line treatment drug.
It is also available in a strawberry flavor and as soluble tablets, which are more easily accepted by children.
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