Author: Njih Favour
#InsideTheBox is a column by Dr Andy Gray, a pharmaceutical sciences expert at the University of KwaZulu-Natal and Co-Director of the WHO Collaborating Centre on Pharmaceutical Policy and Evidence Based Practice. (Photo: Supplied) Comment & Analysis 3rd December 2025 | Andy Gray There has been much confusion and misunderstandings about how cannabis and associated products are regulated in South Africa, with government’s own missteps adding to the uncertainty. In his last #InsideTheBox column for the year, Dr Andy Gray clearly sets out the current legal and regulatory situation and where we’re heading. There is a fundamental assumption that underpins much…
By Tian Johnson, African Alliance The decision by the United States government to retreat from public recognition of World AIDS Day, and to withhold the release of its annual HIV data, is being treated globally as a political earthquake. But World AIDS Day was not created in a US government office and it does not depend on a White House proclamation to exist. It was built from the grief of communities, from the organising of activists, and from the insistence that people living with HIV had the right to be remembered, treated and heard. From our blood, from our pain,…
TB, which is spread through the air when someone who has the bacterium in their lungs coughs it up, is the leading infectious disease on the planet. (Photo: Shutterstock) News & Features 2nd December 2025 | Elri Voigt From studies of new medicines and a mask used to diagnose TB, there was no shortage of interesting findings presented at the recent Union World Conference on Lung Health, held in Copenhagen, Denmark. Spotlight rounds up six studies that stood out. 1. People do better if we dispense all TB prevention pills at once One of the most important questions in TB…
FROM THE ARCHIVE “It was a nice and hot day, there was this breeze. But for me, it was a cold front. That’s how bad it was. And already I was now experiencing AIDS symptoms,” Nombuyiselo Mapongwana (58) recalls from the living room of her Soweto home. In 2002, five years after she was diagnosed with HIV Nombuyiselo was invited by a local pastor to speak at the church’s World AIDS DAY event. On the day of the event, Nombuyiselo was very sick. She had lost a significant amount of weight, experienced night sweats and had a worsening skin disorder…
01 Dec SAHPRA Accepted as a Member of the International Council for Harmonisation of Technical Requirements for Pharmaceuticals for Human Use (ICH) Embargo: Immediate release Pretoria, 1 December 2025 – The South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA) has officially been accepted as a member of the International Council for Harmonisation of Technical Requirements for Pharmaceuticals for Human Use (ICH), following an ICH assessment of compliance with requirements for membership, including a formal presentation outlining SAHPRA’s interest, progress, and milestones in implementing ICH principles. The ICH is a unique global body that brings together regulatory authorities and the pharmaceutical industry…
Joseph Motloung (59) was diagnosed with HIV on 10 June 1994, one of the two dates he says will forever be etched in his memory. “I was diagnosed on a Friday. I disclosed my status on 1 December 1994, it was a Thursday,” he recalls. “Those are the most important dates in my life. I don’t remember many dates; I don’t even remember when my father died. But this one, it’s still here,” he says, tapping the side of his head. Motloung explains that he felt compelled to learn his HIV status after a woman he was in a relationship…
Submissions to SAHPRANew Medicine, Variation, License, Renewal ApplicationsApplications/submissions via sFTP will continue, however, applications received after 19 December 2025 will only be processed from 05 January 2026.Lot Release Applications Lot release applications must reach SAHPRA by 10 December 2025 at 13:00 to allow for the administrative processing and samples to be sent to the laboratory this year. Samples must reach the South African National Control Laboratory for Biological Products (SANCLBP) on or before 12 December 2025.Submission of Section 22A permit applicationsPermits required by 15 December 2025 must be submitted to SAHPRA by 12December 2025. Section 22A permits sec22a_permits@sahpra.org.za Ports of…
Kat and Didi outside the transgender clinic at Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital in Parktown. (Photo: Thom Pierce/Spotlight) News & Features 28th November 2025 | Ufrieda Ho United States funding cuts shredded specialised services at a transgender clinic in the heart of Johannesburg. But a new collaborative initiative refuses to let this be the end of the journey for trans clients. Journalist Ufrieda Ho and photographer Thom Pierce meet some of the people at the forefront of the project. Tuesdays on Esselen Street, Hillbrow used to be favourite days for *Kat. The Wits Reproductive Health Clinic (RHI) is based here…
This project is funded by: Conditions at Victoria Street in Durban’s downtown pose a serious public health hazard, as a major drainpipe that burst months ago continues to leak raw sewage across the pavement. The broken pipe, located near the busy market area, has led to stagnant pools of water that emit a strong, foul odour and attract flies. Vendors working along the street say they have been experiencing persistent stomach issues, vomiting, and itchy and irritated skin as a result. Fear for health and livelihoods Fruit vendor Zinhle Dlamini says her skin has become severely irritated, and she suffers…
(Photo: CDC/Unsplash) Comment & Analysis 27th November 2025 | Marcus Low and Nathan Geffen The National Health Laboratory Service has provided HIV, TB, syphilis and cholesterol data, which Spotlight and GroundUp obtained through the Promotion of Access to Information Act. Earlier this year, we made a request for data to the National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS) using the Promotion of Access to Information Act. In October, we were provided with the data we requested (and more). We are grateful and impressed that the NHLS provided the data without fuss and without the need to go to court. Other state institutions…