Propecia Side Effects – Fact Or Fiction
June 24, 2010 by The Bald Truth
Fear mongering anti-Propecia videos and websites are popping up all over the internet making the decision to effectively treat hair loss even more confusing. Should consumers be legitimately concerned by claims of permanent long term adverse side effects from the drug, or are these videos and websites simply agenda driven anti-Propecia propaganda?
IAHRS accepted member William H. Reed, M.D. discusses his findings of an informal study in which he polled 17 hair restoration practices that have treated more than 30,0000 patients with the drug.
The bottom line: Out of more than 30,000 patients who were prescribed Propecia, not a single one has ever complained of long-term irreversible side effects of any kind.
Listen to the interview:
Please see this – it is not a user generated comment nor a youtube upload, nor someone attempting to fear-monger – but one of the most respected neuroendocrinologist in the country verifying and proposing why there are issues with finasteride – its saddening to see that no one seems to want to recognize that the side effects are real.
http://boards.medscape.com/forums?128@@.29ff6000!comment=1
or
http://blog.alanjacobsmd.com/alan-jacobs-mds-blog/2010/06/index.html
I took Propecia off and on for about 6 years with minimal side effects (slight breast enlargement, slight loss in libido). For some reason when I hit 40 I had a total loss of libido and erectile dysfunction. It seemed that nothing could stimulate me. I went off the propecia and after about 6 months I saw some slight improvement, but still nowhere close to my original state. As any worried single 40 year old would do, I did research online and read a lot about the side effects of Propecia and read about natural remedies for ED. I read an article on http://www.webmd.com that suggested L Arginine with Pycnogenol. I followed the article and in about 2 weeks I was back to my old self. Now being back to my old self, I thought I could get back on the propecia. I took the Propecia at 8am in the morning and by noon my penis had literally shrunk in size and my libido was GONE. DO NOT take PROPECIA!!
Spencer. I pretty suprised at this post. The affects are real and I had to go off it myself. Your own users complain about it on your forums. It caused slight gyno for me and ed problems (though not permanent, but i no longer use propecia after trying a second time). the ed proble i didnt even care about cuz im not plan on ever dealing with women with my hr problem and especialy not with gyno. the gyno is still here tho and im having to use spiro which i hav no clue if it even works and the brand im buying recently made the containers a lot smaller and the cream more watered down, therefore its getting more expensive for me. if i cud use propecia i wud but the affects are certainly real and i read about the problems i got after i got them, so its cerntainly not placebo. for the gyno effect – its possible that since most people are fat anyway that they dont notice or report the affect because they cant tell or look like they hav gyno anway.
im using a private email but if u contact that w
i notice you usually mention that it has no effects during your talks im not sure y. you may think ther is a conspiracy to get people to stop using it but i know i and many people like me use rog. for a few months then try to find something stronger like pro. and use it at the same time because we wud rather use everything not a single thing, so rog. doesnt have much to gain for cases like me.
the gyno problem makes me feel pretty embarassed and im sure a lot of your forum users feel the same or those on other forums. y dont u try talkign to them and seeing if they are trustworthy becuase i think you assume theyre all crazy or somthing.
ill have to continue to visit your site just cuz thers only a few places to go to follow this industry hoping for a better solution while my life gets worse and worse, but your position on this issue seems very odd.
you can also visit bodybuilding forums and search for get rid of gyno, and you’ll see people themselves will say that they got it after using prop. too and we have to buy these weird substances to try to fix it but it didnt work for me exactly.
im using a private email that ill try to check if u want to talk to me personaly or you can make a comment on this page and ill check up on it for the next couple days.
I would urge those to dig deeper. When you see the countless blogs and videos about Propecia side effects you have to believe there is more to this issue and it would deserve more research…certainly more than asking some fellow Physicians what they have heard. I could personally live with some ‘minor’ sexual side effects, however, the side effects I have are brain fog, fatigue, anxiety, insomnia and dysthymia. These symptoms started after taking Propecia and I have had 10 years worth of medical tests come back negative-which again points to Propecia.
Below are links to substantiate the claims of men negatively affected by Finasteride use.
The information below is contrary to the pro-Finasteride bias in this radio segment, which attempts to dismiss claims of permanent sexual side effects from the drug as “psychosomatic” in nature, and erectile dysfunction from Finasteride as a result of “fear of sex”, “self-doubt” and “adrenaline”.
According to the manufacturer’s website:
“A small number of men had sexual side effects, with each occurring in less than 2% of men. These include less desire for sex, difficulty in achieving an erection, and a decrease in the amount of semen. These side effects went away in men who stopped taking PROPECIA because of them. In addition, these side effects decreased to 0.3% of men or less by the fifth year of treatment.”
The manufacturer states that a small number of men had sexual side effects, including less desire for sex and difficulty in achieving an erection — yet the host of this program dismiss claims of impotence, ED and loss of libido while on the drug as unrelated, choosing instead to blame psychological factors, despite both FDA and manufacturer listing such side effects as possible outcomes from usage.
The manufacturer also states that all side effects will resolve upon discontinuation of Propecia. Unfortunately, an unknown number of men worldwide have acquired permanent hypogonadism (loss of Testosterone metabolism) from use, resulting in persistent sexual, mental and physical side effects long after quitting. Some medical professionals are now beginning to suspect these men may have acquired partial androgen resistance as a result of androgen deprivation (loss of DHT) from usage of the medication.
Below are some links which provide additional information on these topics. As the radio host states in his program, he believes men posting such information have a “fear mongering” agenda; however, this could not be further from the truth.
The public deserves to have access to as much information as possible about the medication they are consuming, in order to make an informed decision about usage. Beyond FDA labelling and the manufacturer’s claims, anecdotal reports and real-world experiences, coupled with emerging reports from medical professionals, provide additional knowledge and potential to weigh the risks of undergoing androgen deprivation therapy by taking a 5AR2 inhibitor, to treat what is ultimately a cosmetic, vanity-related and emotional issue (hair loss).
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1. 2010 – Dr. Irwig @ George Washington University conducting clinical study into persistent Propecia side effects
http://www.propeciahelp.com/forum/download/file.php?id=365
2. UK – MHRA: Permanent ED a reported outcome of use
http://www.mhra.gov.uk/home/groups/par/documents/websiteresources/con054522.pdf
- Under Undesirable Side Effects, pg. 7, section 4.8:
“Persistence of erectile dysfunction after discontinuation of treatment with PROPECIA has been reported in post-marketing use.”
3. UK MHRA – Male Breast Cancer now an official side effect
http://www.mhra.gov.uk/home/idcplg?IdcService=GET_FILE&dDocName=CON065504&RevisionSelectionMethod=Latest
“Cases of male breast cancer have been reported for finasteride, and the review suggested that an increased risk of male breast cancer associated with finasteride use cannot be excluded… on the basis of the review, it was recommended that a warning on the risk of breast cancer should be included in the product information for all medicines containing finasteride.”
4. Swedish Medical Products Agency — Male breast cancer now an official side effect
http://www.lakemedelsverket.se/PageFiles/17091/BUpp%20finasteride.doc
“Breast cancer has been reported in men taking finasteride 1 mg during the post-marketing period.”
“In addition, the following have been reported in postmarketing use: persistence of erectile dysfunction after discontinuation of treatment with Propecia; male breast cancer (see section 4.4 Special warnings and precautions for use). has been reported in post-marketing use.”
5. Swedish Medical Products Agency
http://www.lakemedelsverket.se/SPC_PIL/Pdf/enhumspc/Propecia%20film-coated%20tablet%20ENG.doc
Under “Special Warnings and Precautions for Use “, pg. 2, section 4.4:
“Long-term data on fertility in humans are lacking, and specific studies in subfertile men have not been conducted. The male patients who were planning to father a child were initially excluded from clinical trials. Although, animal studies did not show relevant negative effects on fertility, spontaneous reports of infertility and /or poor seminal quality were received post-marketing…”
- Breast cancer has been reported in men taking finasteride 1 mg during the post-marketing period.
Under “Undesirable Side Effects”, pg. 3, section 4.8:
- persistence of erectile dysfunction after discontinuation of treatment with PROPECIA
- male breast cancer ”
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6. Youtube – Swedish TV Investigation into permanent Propecia side effects
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2nXWVTStnHs
7. Youtube – PERMANENT ERECTILE DYSFUNCTION NOW OFFICIAL IN EUROPE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QIDM2N1MuWw
8. Youtube – Dr. John Crisler speaking about permanent Finasteride side effects
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BEGCTMtlgoc
8. Hair loss medicine may cause permanent erection problems
http://translate.google.ca/translate?u=http%3A%2F%2Fsvt.se%2F2.22620%2F1.1649111%2Fharavfallsmedicin_kan_ge_permanenta_erektionsproblem%3Flid%3Dis_search527895%26lpos%3D1%26queryArt527895%3Dpropecia%26sortOrder527895%3D0%26doneSearch%3Dtrue%26sd%3D47225%26from%3DsiteSearch%26pageArt527895%3D0&sl=sv&tl=en&hl=en&ie=UTF-8
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9. Dr. Alan Jacobs – A Neuroendocrine Approach To Finasteride Side Effects In Men
http://blog.alanjacobsmd.com/alan-jacobs-mds-blog/2010/04/a-neuroendocrine-approach-to-finasteride-side-effects-in-men.html
10. Dr. Alan Jacobs – The Plot Thickens, Along With The Hair, When You Mess With Dihydrotestosterone
http://blog.alanjacobsmd.com/alan-jacobs-mds-blog/2010/06/the-plot-thickens-along-with-the-hair-when-you-mess-with-dihydrotestosterone.html
11. Dr. Alan Jacobs – A Proposed Mechanism For Prolonged Sexual Side Effects From Finasteride
http://blog.alanjacobsmd.com/alan-jacobs-mds-blog/2010/06/a-proposed-mechanism-for-prolonged-sexual-side-effects-from-finasteride.html
12. Italy – Alarm for baldness drug
http://translate.google.ca/translate?hl=en&sl=it&u=http://canali.kataweb.it/salute/2010/06/21/arresta-la-calvizie-ma-causa-il-cancro-ma-il-ministro-non-risponde-al-parlamento/&ei=zaAyTIi6LsH7nAfQpty2Aw&sa=X&oi=translate&ct=result&resnum=10&ved=0CDMQ7gEwCTgK&prev=/search%3Fq%3Dirwig%2Bpropecia%26start%3D10%26hl%3Den%26safe%3Doff%26sa%3DN
this is kind of scaring me does everyone who has used this drug have an issue with it or is it only a few.
I used Propecia for nearly two years way back in 2000 when it was still new. It gave me very sore testicles and a decrease in semen. Even back then there were reports of side effects. I stopped mainly because of the sore testicles and they stopped hurting after that.
I also stopped taking it because of the cost, and also the realisation that it was a life committment if you cared that much about hanging onto every thread of hair you had. Are side effects really worth it just to look good?
I was in my mid-40s when I started to loose 300+ hairs a day –
all collected and bagged for a period of over six months while
I read everything I could and listened to radio programs like
Spencer’s. I decided to go on Propecia. I was on it 5 years.
There was a definite drop off in semen production and orgasm
was harder to achieve. Desire dropped off, too. But I wasn’t involved
with women at the time and decided there was no point in losing
hair until I resumed dating. Anyway, I ended up staying on Propecia for almost five years. My hair loss had stopped quickly. Down to less than
50 hairs a day in maybe three months and I liked this benefit. But I
was concerned about eventually getting my full sexual response back
so I went off it for what I figured would be a test period to see how much
of the hair loss would returned. I expected I would soon be back to counting 300+ hairs a day in a matter of months. Two very surprising things happened. One, within 8 weeks my sexual response roared back. It surpassed what I had experienced for at least 10-15 years before going on the drug. It was almost like being a teenager, again. This gradually
leveled off to what I consider a good response for my age (now, 57)
and my hair loss never returned. That’s right. I’ve been off Propecia
for over 6 years now and I have a full head of hair. No male baldness
on top or receding scalp line. My doctor says my prostate size is
normal or better for my age. I still have strong sexual desire and satisfying response every 3-4 days (sluggish ejaculation if I wait over a week or more). I guess I’m one of the luckier ones. Propecia worked
for me.
Read all these complaints about propecia/proscar and freaked out. I did have no sex drive and some side effects while taking the drug but my body came back to normal within a week or two of stopping the drug. Don’t over react. You’ll be okay if you stop the drug. I am not going back on it. I heard DS Labs makes a good topical for the scalp.