Cyproterone Acetate and DHT

Dr. Rassman,

I know this may sound like an odd question, but, would an antiandrogen such as Cyproterone Acetate reduce the levels of DHT in the male body? Would it preserve hair in a person with very little balding. I realize there are major side effects with this drug, but am still curious.

Thanks, and keep up the wonderful work, your blog is quite informative!

Anti-androgens in men can cause a chemical castration, so yes, I would say that the side effects are major. A castrated male has no sex drive and may lose facial and body hair. Cyproterone is not something I’d suggest fooling around with.

The direct answer to your question comes from Wikipedia: “Some in vitro studies have suggested that cyproterone or cyproterone acetate may have a slight inhibitory effect on 5-alpha-reductase, however no significant reduction in DHT production has been observed in vivo.”