Kenyans living with HIV have received a
major boost following Wednesday’s announcement that the government has
committed to invest Sh7.5 billion annually on a local plant that will
make anti-Aids drugs.
The partnership with the Global
Fund, and the US President’s Emergency Plan for Aids Relief (PEPFAR)
will produce Dolutegravir (DTG) – an anti-Aids drug with roots in India.
The
plan, which was rolled out Wednesday, makes Kenya the first country to
introduce the “cheapest” version of the Tivicay ARV brand.
Tivicay is the brand name for DTG’s anti-retroviral ARV, which is manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline through ViiV Healthcare.
Tivicay
has been available in private hospitals such as Aga Khan University
Hospital at a cost of between $12 (Sh1,200) and $50 (Sh5,000).
DTG,
which will be available for free in public hospitals and select private
facilities like Mater Hospital, is said to have fewer side effects on
users and can improve, prolong the lives of tens of thousands of
patients, who suffer adverse drug reactions and resistance to other
treatments.
“We are starting with 27,000 Kenyans living
with HIV who are intolerant to Efavirenz (the first-line HIV drug
currently in use), injecting drug users and those in need of third-line
treatment,” said Deputy Director of Medical Services and Head of Nascop
Dr Martin Sirengo.
“DTG generic has no counter-interaction with other
drugs like TB medicine and produces fewer side effects. It will cost
the government about $50 (Sh5,000) per patient per year in the next two
years when we put all patients on the treatment,” he said.
Dr
Sirengo was speaking during the launch of the drug in Nairobi where
Kenya also celebrated 14 years of anti-retroviral treatment (ART).
UNITAID
donated 148,000 packs of DTG worth about Sh60 million, translating to
Sh400 per pack. UNITAID is an international facility for the purchase
of drugs against HIV/Aids, Malaria and Tuberculosis for poor and
developing countries like Kenya.
Currently,
1.5 million HIV patients in Kenya are on free ART. The government
spends an average of Sh20,000 per year per person on ARTs.
Dr
Sirengo said other partners are being involved to ensure a continuous
supply of DTG after exhausting the donation from Unitaid in about five
months.
Unitaid director of operations Robert Matiru
said the donation is part of their $34million (Sh3.4billion) treatment
programme, which will also be rolled out in Uganda and Nigeria later in
the year.
He said an HIV patient would only need one pack of DTG a month, a small tablet a day, in combination with two other drugs.
“The
investment will cater for the cost of training personnel and preparing
government for the transition. HIV patients with tuberculosis will need
to take two tablets of DTG a day one in the morning and the other in the
evening,” said Mr Matiru.
Mr Matiru said DTG is an affordable option as it is cheaper to manufacture and its ingredients are also readily available.
The
executive director - Network of People Living with HIV and Aids in
Kenya (Nephak), Nelson Otuoma said ART has transformed the killer
disease from “a death sentence to a manageable disease”.
“We
want to confirm that ART works as it tames the virus to avoid
transmission and DTG is efficacious just like its original version. It
is the best if taken religiously,” said Mr Otuoma.
Over
600,000 HIV-related deaths have been averted in Kenya over the last 14
years, with a decline of children infection from 27,000 in 2009 to about
7,000 in 2015. HIV killed 9,471 Kenyans last year down from 11,131 the
previous year.
No comments :
Post a Comment