ViiV HEALTHCARE’S LONG-ACTING CABENUVA (CABOTEGRAVIR + RILPIVIRINE) FOR HIV DEMONSTRATES SUPERIOR EFFICACY COMPARED TO DAILY ORAL THERAPY FOR PEOPLE WITH ADHERENCE CHALLENGES; RESULTS PUBLISHED IN NEJM

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Final data from LATITUDE study show switch to long-acting injectable treatment reduced the risk of virological failure by nearly half for study participants through 48 weeks, compared to those continuing on daily oral therapy

London, 18 February 2026 – ViiV Healthcare, the global specialist HIV company majority owned by GSK, with Pfizer and Shionogi as shareholders,* today announced final data from the LATITUDE phase III trial, confirming its long-acting injectable treatment for HIV, Cabenuva (cabotegravir + rilpivirine), demonstrated superior efficacy in maintaining viral load suppression compared to daily oral therapy in individuals with a history of antiretroviral treatment (ART) adherence challenges.¹

The 48-week data were published in the New England Journal of Medicine, and followed a February 2024 recommendation from an independent Data and Safety Monitoring Board to halt randomisation in the study and invite all eligible study participants to take long-acting injectable cabotegravir + rilpivirine based on interim efficacy data.¹

Kimberly Smith, M.D., MPH, Head of Research & Development at ViiV Healthcare, said: “The LATITUDE study adds to a robust body of evidence supporting the role of long-acting injectable cabotegravir + rilpivirine as a valuable treatment option for people living with HIV. This is the first randomised study confirming this regimen is superior to daily oral therapy in this population. As such, these findings have the potential to validate a long-acting approach for this additional group of patients and could make a significant difference to people living with HIV and our goal of ending the epidemic.”

LATITUDE (Long-Acting Therapy to Improve Treatment Success in Daily Life) is a phase III, randomised, open-label study which enrolled 453 participants who face challenges taking daily oral ART or who disengaged from HIV care. In the study, the median age was 40 years; 63% were Black/African American, 29% were female, 17% were Hispanic, and 14% reported either ongoing or prior injection drug use. Once enrolled, participants received adherence support including conditional economic incentives to achieve viral suppression while taking guideline-recommended daily oral ART. Researchers randomised 306 participants who were able to achieve viral suppression to either receive long-acting injectable (cabotegravir + rilpivirine) every four weeks (n=152) or continue taking daily oral ART (n=154).¹

The primary endpoint was a comparison of regimen failure between arms, defined as a combination of virologic failures (VF) and regimen discontinuation for any reason. The cumulative risk of regimen failure through 48 weeks of treatment was reduced by nearly half in the study: 22.8% for those who were switched to long-acting injectable cabotegravir + rilpivirine vs. 41.2% for people continuing on daily oral therapy (29/152 vs. 55/154, respectively).¹

Among participants receiving long-acting cabotegravir + rilpivirine in the trial, 29/152 (19%) experienced regimen failure, five (3%) of whom had VF and 24 (16%) had permanent treatment discontinuation as their first event. In the daily oral therapy arm, 55/154 (36%) experienced regimen failure, among whom 32 (21%) had VF as their first event and 23 (15%) had permanent treatment discontinuation.¹

Key additional endpoints at week 48 demonstrated the superiority of cabotegravir + rilpivirine vs. daily oral therapy:¹

Endpoint	Cumulative probability, long-acting injectable cabotegravir + rilpivirine (n=152)	Cumulative probability, daily oral therapy (n=154)	Cumulative incidence difference (98.4% CI)
VF (events)	6.8% (6)	28.2% (34)	-21.4% (-33.5%, -9.3%)
Treatment-related failure* (events)	8.9% (9)	28.1% (34)	-19.2% (-31.6%, -6.9%)
Permanent discontinuation of treatment (events)	19.8% (26)	28.2% (37)	-8.4% (-21.3%, 4.5%)

* Earliest occurrence of VF or premature treatment discontinuation due to treatment-related adverse events (AEs).

The rate of AEs was similar in both arms. The most common AE in the long-acting arm was injection site reactions (ISRs), with two participants discontinuing due to an ISR.¹ Two confirmed VF in each arm (n=4 total) had new resistance associated mutations (RAMs), including two new integrase inhibitor RAMs in both long-acting arm participants.¹

Building on the LATITUDE study, ViiV Healthcare is conducting CROWN, a randomised study of long-acting cabotegravir + rilpivirine vs. daily oral therapy in people with adherence challenges and detectable virus.² Unlike LATITUDE, which included a virologic suppression phase, CROWN evaluates the regimen directly in individuals who are not yet suppressed.^1,2

LATITUDE is sponsored and funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health, and was conducted by ACTG, with additional support from the National Institute of Mental Health, the National Institute on Drug Abuse, the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, ViiV Healthcare and Johnson & Johnson.

CABENUVA (cabotegravir; rilpivirine) extended-release injectable suspensions
Professional Indication and Important Safety Information

INDICATION

CABENUVA is indicated as a complete regimen for the treatment of HIV-1 infection in adults and adolescents 12 years of age and older and weighing at least 35 kg to replace the current antiretroviral regimen in those who are virologically suppressed (HIV-1 RNA <50 copies/mL) on a stable antiretroviral regimen with no history of treatment failure and with no known or suspected resistance to either cabotegravir or rilpivirine.

IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION
CONTRAINDICATIONS

Do not use CABENUVA in patients with previous hypersensitivity reaction to cabotegravir or rilpivirine
Do not use CABENUVA in patients receiving carbamazepine, oxcarbazepine, phenobarbital, phenytoin, rifabutin, rifampin, rifapentine, systemic dexamethasone (>1 dose), and St John’s wort

WARNINGS AND PRECAUTIONS
Hypersensitivity Reactions:

Serious or severe hypersensitivity reactions have been reported in association with other integrase inhibitors and could occur with CABENUVA
Hypersensitivity reactions, including cases of drug reaction with eosinophilia and systemic symptoms (DRESS), have been reported during postmarketing experience with rilpivirine-containing regimens. While some skin reactions were accompanied by constitutional symptoms such as fever, other skin reactions were associated with organ dysfunctions, including elevations in hepatic serum biochemistries
Discontinue CABENUVA immediately if signs or symptoms of hypersensitivity reactions develop. Clinical status, including liver transaminases, should be monitored and appropriate therapy initiated. Cabotegravir and rilpivirine oral lead-in may be used to help identify patients who may be at risk of a hypersensitivity reaction

Post-Injection Reactions:

Serious post-injection reactions (reported in less than 1% of subjects) were reported within minutes after the injection of rilpivirine, including dyspnea, bronchospasm, agitation, abdominal cramping, rash/urticaria, dizziness, flushing, sweating, oral numbness, changes in blood pressure, and pain (e.g., back and chest). These events may have been associated with accidental intravenous administration and began to resolve within a few minutes after the injection
Carefully follow the Instructions for Use when preparing and administering CABENUVA. The suspensions should be injected slowly via intramuscular injection and avoid accidental intravenous administration. Observe patients briefly (approximately 10 minutes) after the injection. If a post-injection reaction occurs, monitor and treat as clinically indicated

Hepatotoxicity:

Hepatotoxicity has been reported in patients receiving cabotegravir or rilpivirine with or without known pre-existing hepatic disease or identifiable risk factors
Patients with underlying liver disease or marked elevations in transaminases prior to treatment may be at increased risk for worsening or development of transaminase elevations
Monitoring of liver chemistries is recommended and treatment with CABENUVA should be discontinued if hepatotoxicity is suspected

Depressive Disorders:

Depressive disorders (including depressed mood, depression, major depression, mood altered, mood swings, dysphoria, negative thoughts, suicidal ideation, suicide attempt) have been reported with CABENUVA or the individual products
Promptly evaluate patients with depressive symptoms
Risk of Adverse Reactions or Loss of Virologic Response Due to Drug Interactions:
- The concomitant use of CABENUVA and other drugs may result in known or potentially significant drug interactions (see Contraindications and Drug Interactions)
- Rilpivirine doses 3 and 12 times higher than the recommended oral dosage can prolong the QTc interval
- CABENUVA should be used with caution in combination with drugs with a known risk of Torsade de Pointes

Long-Acting Properties and Potential Associated Risks with CABENUVA:

Residual concentrations of cabotegravir and rilpivirine may remain in the systemic circulation of patients for prolonged periods (up to 12 months or longer). Select appropriate patients who agree to the required monthly or every-2-month injection dosing schedule because non-adherence could lead to loss of virologic response and development of resistance
To minimize the potential risk of developing viral resistance, it is essential to initiate an alternative, fully suppressive antiretroviral regimen no later than 1 month after the final injection doses of CABENUVA when dosed monthly and no later than 2 months after the final injections of CABENUVA when dosed every 2 months. If virologic failure is suspected, switch the patient to an alternative regimen as soon as possible

ADVERSE REACTIONS

The most common adverse reactions in adults (incidence ≥2%, all grades) treated with CABENUVA were injection site reactions, pyrexia, fatigue, headache, musculoskeletal pain, nausea, sleep disorders, dizziness, and rash
The safety of CABENUVA in adolescents is expected to be similar to adults

DRUG INTERACTIONS

Refer to the applicable full Prescribing Information for important drug interactions with CABENUVA, VOCABRIA (cabotegravir), or EDURANT (rilpivirine)
Because CABENUVA is a complete regimen, coadministration with other antiretroviral medications for the treatment of HIV-1 infection is not recommended
Drugs that are strong inducers of UGT1A1 or UGT1A9 are expected to decrease the plasma concentrations of cabotegravir. Drugs that induce or inhibit CYP3A may affect the plasma concentrations of rilpivirine
CABENUVA should be used with caution in combination with drugs with a known risk of Torsade de Pointes

USE IN SPECIFIC POPULATIONS

Pregnancy: There are insufficient human data on the use of CABENUVA during pregnancy to adequately assess a drug-associated risk for birth defects and miscarriage. Discuss the benefit-risk of using CABENUVA during pregnancy and conception and consider that cabotegravir and rilpivirine are detected in systemic circulation for up to 12 months or longer after discontinuing injections of CABENUVA. An Antiretroviral Pregnancy Registry has been established

Lactation: Potential risks of breastfeeding include HIV-1 transmission, developing viral resistance in HIV-positive infants, and adverse reactions in a breastfed infant

For more information, please see full US Prescribing Information for CABENUVA: https://gskpro.com/content/dam/global/hcpportal/en_US/Prescribing_Information/Cabenuva/pdf/CABENUVA-PI-PIL-IFU2-IFU3.PDF

Trademarks are owned by or licensed to the ViiV Healthcare group of companies.

About ACTG

ACTG is the world’s largest and longest running clinical trials network focused on HIV and other infectious diseases and the people living with them. It is funded by NIAID and collaborating NIH Institutes. Founded in 1987, ACTG conducts research to improve the management of HIV and its comorbidities; develop a cure for HIV; and innovate treatments for tuberculosis, hepatitis B, and emerging infectious diseases. It comprises thousands of dedicated researchers, staff, and community members who are pursuing research into novel treatments and cures for infectious diseases at 65 locations across four continents, with the ultimate goal of advancing science that meaningfully impacts the lives of the people we serve.

About ViiV Healthcare

ViiV Healthcare is a global specialist HIV company established in November 2009 by GSK (LSE: GSK) and Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) dedicated to delivering advances in treatment and care for people living with HIV and for people who could benefit from HIV prevention. Shionogi became a ViiV shareholder in October 2012. The company’s aims are to take a deeper and broader interest in HIV and AIDS than any company has done before and take a new approach to deliver effective and innovative medicines for HIV treatment and prevention, as well as support communities affected by HIV.

For more information on the company, its management, portfolio, pipeline, and commitment, please visit viivhealthcare.com.

About GSK

GSK is a global biopharma company with a purpose to unite science, technology, and talent to get ahead of disease together. Find out more at www.gsk.com.

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GSK cautions investors that any forward-looking statements or projections made by GSK, including those made in this announcement, are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those projected. Such factors include, but are not limited to, those described in the “Risk Factors” section in GSK’s Annual Report on Form 20-F for 2024, and GSK’s Q4 Results for 2025.

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*On 20 January 2026, GSK plc and Shionogi & Co., Ltd announced that they have reached agreement together with Pfizer Inc. for the economic interest in ViiV Healthcare Limited currently held by Pfizer to be replaced with an investment by Shionogi. Completion of the transaction is subject to certain regulatory clearances in relevant markets, and is expected to occur during the first quarter of 2026.

References:

Rana A., et al. Cabotegravir plus Rilpivirine for Persons with HIV and Adherence Challenges. N Engl J Med. 2026.
Clinicaltrials.gov website. A Study to Evaluate the Effectiveness of Long-acting (LA) Cabotegravir (CAB) + Rilpivirine (RPV) LA When Given to Participants With Detectable HIV-1 (CROWN). Available at: https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT06694805. Last accessed: February 2026.