Oct 17 (Reuters) -

The UK's drugs cost-effectiveness watchdog has given a

positive recommendation for ViiV Healthcare's HIV drug, enabling

access to the preventive medicine via the state health system in

England and Wales, the GSK unit said on Friday.

The country's drug regulator had approved ViiV's

injection, Apretude, last year for prevention of HIV-1 in adults

and young people who weigh at least 35 kilograms and are at high

risk of acquiring the infection.

A positive recommendation from the National Institute

for Health and Care Excellence, or NICE, solidifies the final

guidance related to Apretude for National Health Service, ViiV

said.

It also allows the drug to be routinely funded and enables

access through NHS. Pending any appeals, the drug will be

available to eligible people in Wales within two months and in

England within three months.

Such preventative treatments, medically called pre-exposure

prophylaxis or PrEP, are used to reduce the risk of acquiring

HIV.

Apretude provides an alternative for people who cannot, or

prefer not to, take oral HIV-prevention medication. It won U.S.

approval in late 2021 and in Europe in 2023, and generated 279

million pounds ($374.95 million) in global sales last year.

The drug competes with U.S. drugmaker Gilead's oral

daily pills Truvada and Descovy along with long-acting

injectable drug Yeztugo.

ViiV's drug can be given every two months, compared with

Gilead's Yeztugo, which is given every six months. GSK is

exploring a long acting version of Apretude that could

potentially be dosed every four months or more.

($1 = 0.7441 pounds)