The Finasteride FDA Probe Has Triggered Intense Anxiety!

Dr. Rassman,

The latest news regarding the FDA and Propecia has triggered some intense anxiety in me. I have been using Propecia for 5 years, and have always had a little concern in the back of my mind. The fact is, its still a relatively new chemical.

In response to a question regarding the FDA looking into potential dangers of Propecia, you replied “In my opinion, Avodart and Propecia are both safe medications when used as directed…under the supervision of a physician.” You also quoted from the Merck spokesperson who referenced that there was already mention of male breat cancer in the propecia literature.

1. Shouldn’t we take this news as a warning flag that perhaps there is more to long-term use of Propecia than we might have originally thought?
2. You probably have had a number of patients taking Propecia for close to 10 years, or longer. In fact, you probably have a pretty decent sample size of patients using this drug. What have you seen in patients with regards to side-effects over the years?
3. You frequently answer questions about the hair-loss catch-up phase if someone stops taking Propecia. I am curious as to why someone would stop taking Propecia if they have been on it for several years or more?

I am sorry you have so much anxiety with the news, but at this point it is just an investigation. There is no link that Propecia causes breast cancer so don’t jump on the hysteria bandwagon. I would strongly recommend that you speak with your prescribing doctor about your concerns. Make educated and well informed choices, weighing out risks and benefits.

In my private practice of 10+ years of treating patients with Propecia, I have not seen a patient who presented with breast cancer. We have treated thousands of patients with Propecia/finasteride.

Most of my patients do not stop taking Propecia after several years, and many of them have been taking it for 5-10+ years with no issues. People might stop taking any medication for a variety of reasons, and the questions I post here are usually not from my patients so I’d have no way to know if there were medical reasons, financial reasons, etc. We should wait for any word from the FDA that points to real risks that we are unaware of at this time.