07:56 AM EDT, 10/21/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Gilead Sciences ( GILD ) and Merck ( MRK ) said Saturday that their phase 2 study evaluating the combination therapy of islatravir and lenacapavir as a potential treatment for HIV met its secondary endpoints.

The combination therapy showed a 94% rate of viral suppression in the participants, the companies said. It was also found that switching to the combination therapy maintained comparable high rates of HIV suppression.

Meanwhile, about 19% of the participants experienced treatment-related adverse events and no high-grade adverse events related to the drug were reported, the companies said.

The study had previously met its primary endpoint.

The investigational combination is being evaluated as a fixed-dose combination regimen in two phase 3 studies for people with HIV, Gilead and Merck ( MRK ) said. If late trials are successful, the regimen could become the first oral HIV treatment.

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