Professor and WE-REACH Excecutive Director Rodney J Ho and his team in the UW School of Pharmacy’s targeted, long-acting therapy program (called TLC-ART) have achieved a breakthrough in technology to transform the most prescribed 3 daily oral HIV pills (25 of 41 million people with HIV) into a single long-acting injectable.
Once developed, this product may keep most people living with HIV healthier without having to deal with pill fatigue or drug-drug interactions as they live out to old age. Many in the field consider this idea as impossible without UW innovation. This next-generation combination HIV treatment product (TLC-ART 301) is designated by the FDA as an Investigational New Drug product, granting the team clearance to initiate clinical studies.
According to Dr. Ho, “This achievement was made possible by the tireless work of students, faculty and staff, along with public and private partnership through NIH and Unitaid investments of more than $30 million.”