I took finasteride for about a year and a half with no sexual side effects. I went off the medication due to all the lastest bad news of people having issues even after stopping the drug. SInce I have lost TONS of hair. I want to go back on and am wondering since I was on it for so long with no side effects does that mean I most likely never will going back on it?
Thank you!

If you didn’t have side effects before, I wouldn’t expect they would appear upon restarting the medication, but I can’t know that for sure. I do believe that much of the panicking posts online are from people that have concluded on their own that Propecia is the cause for most of their problems (real or imagined) and there’s likely nothing that will convince them otherwise. The wave of recent press about permanent side effects comes from a study based on interviews with 54 people, but the headlines are more interesting than the content.

As adults, we all have to make grown up decisions that may impact our health. From smoking cigarettes to overeating to putting ourselves in debt… these are decisions we make.

I can not help you with your decision of whether to take the medication other than to say that my son takes it and neither he nor I worry about everything that is panicking the folks on the internet. This is an elective prescription medication, so you’ll need to talk to your doctor more about your concerns and hopefully that will help you decide what you want to do next.

Hi doc

I’ve been taking propecia now for 2 months and starting to see good results,

But I’ve read that people shed hair before you see results? I’ve shed no hair what so ever. Is that good or bad?

Thanks for your help and advise this site has been very helpful

Shedding isn’t that common after starting Propecia, so what you’re seeing is not a rare occurrence. Stick to your plan and congratulations on your early success!

Dear Dr., I am Male to Female Transsexual who’s been on (finasteride 5 mg, Spironolactone 100 mg, Estradiol and Progesterone) for 14 months now. I am 30 y/o, my body is responding well but my hair isn’t. I get some tiny hairs on my hairline but I loose them, I go through phases of shedding. Recently, I started to read a lot about Avodart but I am debating with my Dr. on the dose.

The 0.5 mg is not intended for Hair loss but higher doses are more effective. Is 1.0 mg better or shall I go with the 2.5 mg? Or is the 0.5 mg effective in my case since my T levels are low? I mentioned my case because my case is unlike any other cases, my body Chemistry is a woman’s but I did not have the Testosterone factory removed yet so I am pretty confused.

Please, I really need your kind advice. My Dr. is unfamiliar with Avodart and for financial issues, I cannot see anyone else. Thanks so much and kindly accept my gratitude.

I’ve answered a related question years ago — Transgender Male-to-Female Taking Dutasteride.

As you aren’t my patient, I am unable to give you specific dosing advice on how to use the various drugs which have an anti-androgen effect. This treatment for balding may not work at all if you triggered the hair loss when you had androgens working in your system. Avodart (dutasteride) may not reverse the hair loss, particularly since you’re looking to regrow the hairline, but it may slow down the loss process, possibly more than finasteride.

I have treated male-to-female transsexuals with hair transplants and provided that the balding pattern is not too advanced, the results are pretty good. I have not treated MTF patients with Avodart, though.

If finasteride is based off of a tuber plant, what is dutasteride based off of? The same tuber?

As far as I know, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) developed dutasteride… but my knowledge of its origin pretty much ends there. I’m not familiar with their processes of discovery.

I do know that dutasteride works in similar ways to finasteride and is used to treat certain prostate problems. Dutasteride is not yet approved for the treatment of male pattern baldness, though.

My father is a Norwood 6. He is 80 years old. He has advanced prostate cancer. Treatment includes medication that drops your testosterone levels because prostate cancer feeds off of testosterone. Besides treating his cancer, he’s had some hair regrowth. The meds have some listed significant side effects but he hasn’t really experienced them. Just wondering if anyone has studied the use of Lupron and Ketoconozole for hair growth or especially prevention of hair loss. He also takes Casodex for eliminating testosterone produced by the adrenal glands?

I guessing the problem is that the long term use of these drugs, although effective at dropping your DHT levels lower than current meds, will weaken your bone over time and make you osteoporotic.

Any thoughts? Thought there would be a way to manipulate the effects of these drugs and use them for hair loss prevention

I do not think taking medication for cancer treatment with all the side effects possibilities would be a worthwhile risk for the treatment of hair loss (which is not a life threatening condition). There are always risks and benefits that need to be weighed before taking a medication.

Ketoconazole is an anti-fungal medication that some people claim has positive effects on hair growth, but Lupron lists hair loss as a possible side effect. As far a research behind the drugs you mentioned for the treatment of hair loss, I am not aware of any.

First off, great job on the blog Dr. Rassman. It’s probably the most valuable information regarding hair loss on the internet.

I noticed the first “signs” of MPB when i was 22 (26 now). I thought the corners of my hairline started to recede. That coupled with my brother and father being bald I freaked out and decided to see a doctor. I sought the help of a reputed NYC area specialist (I’m not going to mention his name) and upon a hair miniaturization test and the divulging of my family history he advised I go on Propecia. He assured me though that the minituarization was only slightly present just in the front of the hairline.

I got on Propecia right away and 4 years later my hair looks exactly the same short of a little more recession in the hairline but I would say that I am STILL not 100% at the mature hairline point that you describe so thoroughly on this blog.

Because my brother was pretty much bald (full NW5) by the time he was 22 and my father also a full NW5 by age 26 is it somewhat safe to assume that I may have dodged the bullet since I am 26 and not even a full NW2 yet? If it makes any difference I also physically take after my mother and in her family baldness is not common.

It is also very much possible that Propecia may be responsible for me keeping all my hair but I would want to know if there is any way to find out for sure. I would not want to take a drug I don’t really need for all my life especially with all the recent commotion about this product.

Thank you.

Thank you for sharing your story. I guess the way to find out for sure if Propecia was responsible, you’d have to stop taking the medication and see if your hair falls out. Not exactly ideal, and not something I’d recommend.

There’s also the HairDX Finasteride Response test, but it won’t tell you if Propecia is the reason you still have hair on your head. It should tell you if you’re responding to finasteride, though.

Dr. Rassmann,

I am 21 year old male and I recently had surgery to correct an underbite. I started propecia shortly after my surgery. Will the propecia protect against possible shock loss after the surgery? I’m concerned because I saw in earlier posts that in balding men with shock hair loss, the hair does not usually return.

Propecia is taken for treating androgenic alopecia, not for shock loss following underbite correction surgery. Hair loss after general anesthesia or medical issues is not related to androgenic alopecia.

If you were prescribed Propecia to treat your genetic hair loss, it might protect you… but I wouldn’t recommend the medication solely for protecting from a temporary shock loss.