Preparing for Battle (post includes lab results from bloodworm and scalp biopsy :))

[Obsessive]

Hi All,
First post after hitting the forums hard since June 2018, which is when the hair starting falling pretty rapidly.
About myself: 40 years old, receding hair line, hair loss in the usual MPB areas, diffuse frontal thinning and low density on the crown. Wavy/curly hair is keeping me above water, bearly.

June 2nd, 2018, suddenly starting losing 50-60 thick hairs during showering each day, which was in total contrast to only noticing a few each day. No idea why it started so suddenly, but a dermatologist friend suggested it was the result of telogen effluvium. This gave me some hope but just as backup, I started .25 mg finasteride on July 1. Right before starting I had my DHT and Test levels checked: DHT=77 (range 15-79) and Total Test=840 (range 290-1100). After 1 month I had my levels checked again: DHT=29 and Total Test=850.

By mid Aug, the loss had not slowed and thinning was becoming extreme, so I started 1 mg finasteride / day and had 2 scalp biopsies. Biopsy Results: follicular miniaturization indicative of androgenic alopecia.

I've been using minoxidil daily for >5 years and have been on finasteride since July 1, but I want to strengthen my regimen before more damage is done. I already know my DHT has been taken down significantly (from 77 to 29...probably even lower now). My research tells me that DHT reduction may only be part of the hairloss problem. I've seen so few RU success stories so I don't want to go there. I would like to compromise and go with topical estrogen, which seems to have a number of positive anecdotal reports (compared to RU). Yes, there's a possibility of side effects but that's the game I'm prepared to play. I've seen that some users on this forum are applying some form of estrogen. I would greatly appreciate advice on which topical estrogen I should go with: estriol, estradiol, etc. and what formulation should be used.
Thank you!