Lenacapavir may slow HIV infections 'but there's not enough'

For a healthy young woman in South Africa, the greatest risk of HIV may come from someone she wants to trust, but can't.

She may not know her partner's HIV status, may not always be able to insist they use a condom, and may have little control over whether he has other partners.

There is an option: Daily Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) pills keep antiretroviral drugs in the body at high enough levels to stop HIV before it can establish any infection.

But PrEP only works if she keeps taking the medication.

Miss too many doses and drug levels can fall too low to provide sufficient protection.