About injectable HIV treatment: Cabenuva

Cabenuva is safe

Injectable HIV treatment is safe and effective at controlling HIV.

As few as 6 doses per year

Once on a stable schedule, many patients get shots every 8 weeks.

Ongoing treatment, not a cure

Cabenuva is an ongoing treatment, not a cure. You must keep using it to control HIV.

What is Cabenuva

Cabenuva is the brand name of a complete injectable HIV treatment. It contains 2 medications: cabotegravir and rilpivirine.
Cabenuva shots (injections) keep the level of medication in your body high enough so you do not have to take daily pills.
You may hear it called: Injectable ART, LAI ART or LA CAB/RPV (long-acting “cab ril”)

You get the shots in a medical clinic.
Your clinic gets the medication from a specialty pharmacy. You do not need to pick it up from a pharmacy.
2 shots go in the muscle, usually one in each buttock. Tell your provider if you have implants or fillers in this area.

The loading doses (first two shots) are given 4 weeks apart. After that, many people can get the shots every 8 weeks.
In some cases, your provider may recommend continuing to get the shots every 4 weeks.
Getting regular shots keeps the level of medications in your body high enough so they can control HIV.
You can get the shots up to 7 days before or 7 days after each injection due date.

Your provider may prescribe you "oral backup" pills to have on hand, in case you have to miss a shot.
Tell your clinic right away if you cannot get to the clinic when a shot is due. Most providers will have you take your oral backup pills until you can get your next shot.
If you are late, your medical team will tell you what to do next.

Make an appointment for your next shot before you leave the clinic.
Keep your clinic up to date with your cell phone, email, and where you live.
Set a reminder in your phone for your next shot.
Sign up for the clinic’s online patient portal (MyChart) and turn on notifications.
Give your clinic a backup contact in case they cannot reach you.

Once you have had an undetectable viral load while taking HIV medication for at least 6 months, there is no longer any risk of HIV transmission when you have sex. This is called "undetectable equals untransmittable," or U=U.
Learn more about U=U.

The most common side effects are pain, swelling, or redness where you got the shots. Pain can be mild to intense soreness in the buttock/hip and may last 1 to 7 days.
Side effects tend to lessen each time you get the shots.
You can treat pain with a hot or cold pack and take ibuprofen or acetaminophen (pain relievers).
Avoid sitting for a long time after the shots. Go for a walk to help relieve pain.
Contact your medical team if you have warm and painful swelling or other symptoms that worry you.

If you do not like the shots, talk with your medical team about switching back to pills. You will need to take pills every day to treat HIV.
If you do not take pills every day after stopping the shots, HIV can become resistant to many HIV medications. This can make HIV treatment more complicated.

Medi-Cal, Medicare, and most private health insurance plans cover Cabenuva.
People in San Francisco without insurance or with Healthy SF can also get Cabenuva.
California ADAP can help pay medication and office visit costs, if needed.

Getting the shots on time is essential. Your medical team may not be able to offer you injectable HIV treatment if you cannot make it to clinic regularly.
Some HIV can be resistant to the medications in Cabenuva. Your provider will run tests and look at your treatment history to see if your HIV has resistance. If it does, Cabenuva may not be an option for you.
Some medications and supplements interact negatively with Cabenuva. Your provider will check for interactions with the medication you are taking.
If you have hepatitis B, you will need to take oral medications to treat it. Cabenuva does not treat hepatitis B.

This information is provided by San Francisco City Clinic. Visit our homepage at sf.gov/cityclinic.

Information on this page last revised June 9, 2026