Is Propecia Really safe?

[burtandernie]

I saw a derm like 5-7 years ago and he said he had tons of guys on it and said it was very safe. He gave me a prescription and I decided against it just because my hair loss was very slow and minor. Propecia was also very expensive back then. Its very safe as far as drugs go but again its an internal drug so inherently its never perfectly safe. Your taking a risk and everyone knows that but the risk is low

[Aonyx262]

Been on it for just over 3 months. No sides whatsoever. It is of course and individual's choice whether or not to put something in their body, but realistically eating crappy food and sitting on the couch is more likely to cause long term ED than finasteride.

[nick300]

I was on propecia for about 2 years and had horrible side effects. After stopping it took me a good 4-5 months to recover my libido. Would never go back on it

[ParanoiaDestroya]

Nootcoolanymore is of course correct. Finasteride is a drug with an excellent safety profile. It is heartbreaking to me that all of these young guys are worried about losing their sexual function when really the incidence of sexual side effects is low and not well studied to begin with. For all of the young guys out there reading this thread, worried about ED, Bernstein crystallized the issue very well here: http://www.bernsteinmedical.com/answ...m-finasteride/

If you decide it isn't for you, at least you will have come to that conclusion on the basis of known facts.

[blakes33]

All this back and forth on whether finasteride is safe is just a bunch of BS. Absolutely no prescription drug is 100% safe, NONE. Read a list of many of the popular drugs in use today. Many will include the potential for many dangerous sides including multiple cancers. Finasteride has been in use for close to 30 years and is considered one of the safer drugs to take. Does this mean that all will be ok to take it? Hell no, some will get effed up if they decide to use it. Unfortunately that is the risk we all take when we decide on taking a prescription drug.

Finasteride is our best defense against MPB. There is definite risk involved in taking it. I know that and am willing to take the risk to keep my hair. Is it worth the risk? At this point in time it is for me. Others may feel that hair is not worth risking their health. I am fine with that. At the end of the day it should be a personal choice and we really need to stop attacking people for whatever choices they decide to make. For all of us taking fin and having success, we should refrain from giving people a hard time that don't want to take the risk. For all the guys who refuse to take it and are upset that they have no other alternative and are accepting that they will go bald, need to stop taking their frustrations out an fin users.

Notcool: I completely agree. It is an individual choice on whether to take the risk. I appreciate your honesty - it is very refreshing to hear someone who actually recognizes the risk and is willing to take an analytical approach to cost/benefit analysis. For me, had I known in 1998 of the risks, I would not have opted to take it; but hindsight is always 20/20!

One caveat here is that on April 11, 2012 the FDA updated finasteride warning label in which Merck changed the label to include the possibility (albeit through obtuse language) of libido disorders, ejaculation disorders, and orgasm disorders that continued after discontinuation of the drug. The guilt (from a legal standpoint) is only valid if you were not informed/warned about the possible side-effects from a medication. Up until April 11, 2012 nobody knew these things could happen (legally) because Merck had not admitted to it. Now that they have admitted that they can occur in permanent nature, they are no longer responsible if a man develops the illness, since they technically have now TOLD you that it could happen. They will say you had the information available, knew that it was a possibility but chose to use it anyway. Not trying to sway anyone's opinion - just something I learned recently and wanted to share.

[burtandernie]

True, but I think there is a small chance a topical like CB 03 01 could turn out to work very effectively and still have minimal sides. We dont know until its done, but topically there is a chance that could be done. Internally we all know that wont happen anytime soon

[ShookOnes]

I'm a diffuse thinner and my temples went back to maybe a norwood 3? I had some regrowth around the temples but grew back everything back on top/back that I had lost. All at 17. I've family history of norwood 6/7s in their TWENTIES.

Propecia made my balls hurt for weeks, and even now a year later I have never gotten morning wood. erections are weak.

[Notcoolanymore]

Propecia (finasteride) has its' risks just like every other prescription drug. The sides most feared appear to be ED and brain fog. If hair is not worth risking these sides then don't take the drug. It is not that hard. I have yet to hear anybody claim that they were forced to take it. It is up to the user to educate themselves and make the decision that is best for them. We also need to be smart about it. If you take the drug and experience ED or brain fog, then stop taking the drug. Simple as that. If you choose harm yourself by continuing to take it then there is really nobody else to blame but yourself.

[Notcoolanymore]

All this back and forth on whether finasteride is safe is just a bunch of BS. Absolutely no prescription drug is 100% safe, NONE. Read a list of many of the popular drugs in use today. Many will include the potential for many dangerous sides including multiple cancers. Finasteride has been in use for close to 30 years and is considered one of the safer drugs to take. Does this mean that all will be ok to take it? Hell no, some will get effed up if they decide to use it. Unfortunately that is the risk we all take when we decide on taking a prescription drug.

Finasteride is our best defense against MPB. There is definite risk involved in taking it. I know that and am willing to take the risk to keep my hair. Is it worth the risk? At this point in time it is for me. Others may feel that hair is not worth risking their health. I am fine with that. At the end of the day it should be a personal choice and we really need to stop attacking people for whatever choices they decide to make. For all of us taking fin and having success, we should refrain from giving people a hard time that don't want to take the risk. For all the guys who refuse to take it and are upset that they have no other alternative and are accepting that they will go bald, need to stop taking their frustrations out an fin users.

[blakes33]

Who knew that propecia (finasteride) is a commonly used drug for gender change?

http://www.transgendercare.com/medical/resources/tmf_program/tmf_program_5.asp

Forms of Feminizing Hormone Therapy

Finasteride (Propecia, Proscar)

Another good choice for an anti-androgen is finasteride (Proscar, Propecia), and is able to be used in concert with spironolactone.*The primary use of Proscar (finasteride 5 mg) was in the treatment of benign prostatic enlargement, but with its reintroduction as Propecia (finasteride 1 mg), the drug is being largely marketed to promote scalp hair growth.* For transgendered women, finasteride when given in the larger dose promotes not only scalp hair growth but acts as an potent anti-androgen as it is highly effective in inhibiting the conversion of testosterone to DHT (dehydrotestosterone) responsible for male sexual characteristics.* Finasteride is usually physically well tolerated over long durations, but is expensive.*

Wow!!!!

[Karlton]

I think its a pretty basic assumption that there is no such thing as a completely safe internal drug given current medicine. Not much else to say really. You might not have any obvious visible sides, but does that mean a drug is safe or just that you had nothing noticeable? All the stuff about the role of DHT is completely based on what we currently know and believe. Things like this are constantly being redefined and changing as we learn more about what it does. I dont think in most cases we completely understand every role DHT plays and how it affects different people differently.
All that being said its the best there is so if your going bald and it bothers you I dont see why you wouldnt use it. Its safe as far as we know

So true. We are the guinea pigs as far as long term effects go. Everyone can come on here and speculate all they want, but the fact is no can know what will happen down the road.
Like you said, if hair loss is interfering with your life, then you might as well treat it the best way we know how. The next treatment to hit the market will have its own set of risks and side effects to weigh, and until and outright cure comes along, we must live with a certain degree of uncertainty within our treatment regimens.

[burtandernie]

I think its a pretty basic assumption that there is no such thing as a completely safe internal drug given current medicine. Not much else to say really. You might not have any obvious visible sides, but does that mean a drug is safe or just that you had nothing noticeable? All the stuff about the role of DHT is completely based on what we currently know and believe. Things like this are constantly being redefined and changing as we learn more about what it does. I dont think in most cases we completely understand every role DHT plays and how it affects different people differently.
All that being said its the best there is so if your going bald and it bothers you I dont see why you wouldnt use it. Its safe as far as we know

[hiko]

Because I'm sure it's really difficult to get published in the Korean Journal of Urology...

Can we please stop posting these weak, half-assed studies?

[Aeroes]

Those statistics are bullshit. So many more people get side effects than 1-2% .. Hello we are talking about male sex hormones here.

[Armandein]

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4064044/

Recent publication