FDA: Prostate Cancer Risk From BPH, Hair Loss Drugs

[Mutahirw]

This important read specially since so many people use these drugs regularly as hairless treatment.

 

 

FDA: Prostate Cancer Risk From BPH, Hair Drugs

 

Would be interesting to get others thoughts as well...

[cardel25]

This important read specially since so many people use these drugs regularly as hairless treatment.

 

 

FDA: Prostate Cancer Risk From BPH, Hair Drugs

 

Would be interesting to get others thoughts as well...

 

Thats awful to read. It would be nice to see how many people was in the trial and how high the % is for developing prostate cancer.

[hairlosscursed]

Thats Horror movie...im wondering what merc say about this...i also would like to hear what the moderators and the older members of this forum suggest about this selling product since as i know we can order it from here...correct me if im wrong...this is very serious and we should all act since this forum is supposed to be powerfull i guess we need to have some answers instead of trying to find the best surgeon or fighting for who is the best surgeon...i repeat this is serious issue and is not funny...im expecting some answers from the moderators if they know something more and dont let down this topic as non popular...,

[hairlosscursed]

Enough is enough don t you think?we spent a fortune to surgeons with douptful results just to add some hairs more which in fact they don t make any difference.we put minox vitamins etc.and now we are experimental animals of how propecia really affect us after long use...this is unfair...nobody cares in here for all these issues???we care only for which surgeon is the best and we fight for them???we are all victems then...we have what we deserve

[Cant decide]

I am a scientist who has worked in the pharma industry for years. I deal with FDA all the time. In my opinion, this is somthing that everyone should be aware of but is not reason for alarm. When FDA states (Very small) without attaching a number to it, it means it is very very rare. I would suspect it is so rare that your chances of getting hit by a car tomarrow are much higher. Should we all plan on staying inside for the rest of our lives? Bottom line is that as with anything, you have to weigh the risks/benifits.

[orlhair1]

Definitely something to pay attention to and discuss with your Dr. However, I would not be alarmed by every study that comes out. It is just one more thing to consider. When you think about it sodas increases the risk of several types of cancer and how many people drink them every day. I am not minimizing it but just suggesting it is not something to overeact to.

[TakingThePlunge]

I agree that this matter deserves serious attention. Many of us here (including me) take finasteride on a weekly, if not daily, basis. While I don't believe there is cause for panic at this time, we are certainly keeping our eyes and ears out for any and all updates.

 

Blake (Future_HT_Doc) recently published the following article on our popular Q&A Blog:

 

FDA Warns Hair Loss Drugs Propecia (Finasteride) and Avodart (Dutasteride) May Increase Risk of Prostate Cancer?

 

While the FDA has released a statement stating that both finasteride and dutasteride may increase the risks of high-grade prostate cancer, it seems that not all experts are in agreement. Dr. Otis Bawley, the Chief Medical Officer and Vice President of the American Cancer Society, is one who disagrees with the FDA findings.

 

Of course, I"m sure it comes as no surprise to anyone that Merck is standing behind its claims that both Proscar (5% finasteride) and Propecia (1% finasteride) are both safe and effective.for the treatment of benign prostate hyperplasia and hair loss respectively.

 

I encourage anyone with more information to share it here.

[Tao]

Yeah, this doesn't totally surprise me. I chose not to take Propecia or Proscar as I just didn't want to risk any long term (or short term) affects. My feeling is that playing with the body's hormones, etc. is risky. These things are complicated and DHT likely has many roles in the body besides just killing off our hair. It's a tough call though. We all take a risk just getting out of bed in the morning. One has to find the level of risk one is comfortable with and sometimes that involves choosing between two non-ideal choices -in this case losing your hair or taking on what is hopefully just a small risk of short and/or long term side affects. In my case, I could get by without the drug so I chose that option.

[rws]

While the FDA might have come out on one side of the argument, it's important to understand that there's competing evidence out there to suggest that the higher cancer risk is not the case at all. Here's a link to some info on another study, which found the case NOT to be true:

 

Medscape: Medscape Access

 

And here's some more recent evidence from an interview with a Canadian health official, who also refutes the higher cancer risk:

 

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When you're dealing with such a small, disputed risk, you begin to realise that they're talking about minute probabilities, which most likely shouldn't worry anyone. As someone else has mentioned on this thread, you have more chance of being hit by a car when you walk down the street.

 

Cancer IS multifactorial. That means that it's everyone's duty to live healthy lives, eat balanced diets, wear sunscreen and do everything else to remain generally healthy. That's much more important than worrying about remote possibilities of side effects from a very small dose of a drug.

Edited April 16, 2012 by rws