Is Generic Finasteride really as good as Propecia/Proscar?

[capitan]

I used to take Propecia 1mg for the first month of treatment.

But the last few weeks I have been taking Generic Finasteride 5mg by TEVA from my local pharmacy (aka walgreens).

I cut up the blue tablet into 1/4ths, so I'm getting around 1.25mg a day now.

I have a few questions

1. Why does Proscar/Propecia cost so much more if Generics are "just as effective"?

2. Since I have to cut the tablets by eye, I'm sure somedays I'm getting more or less Finasteride than the day before. Is this ok?

3. Bottom line, are Generics just as effective?

I'm a high school student paying for his own medication, however, I will pay the $90 a month for Propecia 1mg if it's the most effective option.

Thanks everyone and good luck.

[redy]

The generics, if on prescription from a pharmacy or something legit will be the same thing as brand names.

There's really no difference other than inactive ingredients, which shouldn't cause any real effectiveness variations.

As for the cutting, I too started doing this a month or so ago in my third month of treatment. (I'm days away from 3 months done!) I have worried about the dosages myself since starting it, but more along the lines of whether the pill itself has an uneven distribution of active ingredient (i.e. taking 4 sections and then having each section have a varying dosage). Logically speaking, this shouldn't be possible, but then again I'll never really know.

The costs for the brand names are always higher, but the generics are going to be bridging the gap and lowering the prices for brand names in the next few years as more and more companies break into the market. It was originally on patent for the brand names and they could monopolize the market and charge a price much higher than their marginal costs (sorry, econ major) and now as more firms build the capital and operational facilities to compete in this market the generics and brand name will get closer in pricing. I've been grappling with deciding to pay for the 1mg full price or just continue the cheaper 5mg cutting method, for fear that my dosage inconsistencies may effect my results (which I seem to be getting already)

Get a pill cutter from CVS, or whatever, I found that I can basically ensure that I'm cutting them into 4ths, almost perfectly. I'd say the sections are usually between 22% - 27% each.

[capitan]

The generics, if on prescription from a pharmacy or something legit will be the same thing as brand names.

There's really no difference other than inactive ingredients, which shouldn't cause any real effectiveness variations.

As for the cutting, I too started doing this a month or so ago in my third month of treatment. (I'm days away from 3 months done!) I have worried about the dosages myself since starting it, but more along the lines of whether the pill itself has an uneven distribution of active ingredient (i.e. taking 4 sections and then having each section have a varying dosage). Logically speaking, this shouldn't be possible, but then again I'll never really know.

The costs for the brand names are always higher, but the generics are going to be bridging the gap and lowering the prices for brand names in the next few years as more and more companies break into the market. It was originally on patent for the brand names and they could monopolize the market and charge a price much higher than their marginal costs (sorry, econ major) and now as more firms build the capital and operational facilities to compete in this market the generics and brand name will get closer in pricing. I've been grappling with deciding to pay for the 1mg full price or just continue the cheaper 5mg cutting method, for fear that my dosage inconsistencies may effect my results (which I seem to be getting already)

Get a pill cutter from CVS, or whatever, I found that I can basically ensure that I'm cutting them into 4ths, almost perfectly. I'd say the sections are usually between 22% - 27% each.

Thanks for the detailed explanation man.

I already got a pill cutter, but I never took it out the packaging. Lol. I'll do that now and give it a shot.

I know what you mean about the dosage inconsistencies. Not only am I cutting them a little unevenly, but sometimes I see the white powder spill out.

What could this mean?

[Dr. Glenn Charles]

As long as the generic is coming from a reputable pharmacy than there should be no real difference. Only one ingredient=Finasteride.