Regular Member vettel Posted May 24, 2014 Regular Member Share Posted May 24, 2014 I have done a blood test and both (red and white) blood cells are very low. My doctor told me its probably from finasteride. I was originally taking propecia for 8 months then proscar for 3 months cutting it in 4 pieces. Does anybody know if finasteride makes your blood cells very low? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member vettel Posted May 24, 2014 Author Regular Member Share Posted May 24, 2014 Anyone who can help? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member Cant decide Posted May 24, 2014 Senior Member Share Posted May 24, 2014 I do not see how that is possible. You should get a second opinion. As far as I know, there is no connection between cell count and lowering DHT. My Hairloss Web Site - Procedure #1: 5229 Grafts with Dr. Rahal Oct, 2010 Procedure #2: 2642 Grafts with Dr. Rahal Aug, 2013 7871 Grafts http://www.hairtransplantnetwork.com/blog/home-page.asp?WebID=2452 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member Blake Bloxham Posted May 24, 2014 Senior Member Share Posted May 24, 2014 Vettel, I found a study where roughly 4,000 people taking Propecia were evaluated for side effects. In this study, 2 of the 4,000 (0.05%) suffered from anemia (low red blood cell/hemoglobin counts). What's more, these individuals suffered from a specific type of anemia called aplastic anemia, which causes a decrease in all bone marrow produced blood cells - white blood cells, red blood cells, and platelets. The chances are quite slim, but it seems like Propecia could (theoretically) cause low red and white blood cell counts. However, there are a lot of other possibilities, and I think these should be thoroughly discussed with your physician. Is it possible to meet with the doctor to discuss your results further or seek a second opinion? Best of luck. "Doc" Blake Bloxham - formerly "Future_HT_Doc" Forum Co-Moderator and Editorial Assistant for the Hair Transplant Network, the Hair Loss Learning Center, the Hair Loss Q&A Blog, and the Hair Restoration Forum All opinions are my own and my advice does not constitute as medical advice. All medical questions and concerns should be addressed by a personal physician. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member vettel Posted May 25, 2014 Author Regular Member Share Posted May 25, 2014 I have been to 2 doctors specialists after I did the first blood test and they have both advised me stopping the pill immediately. This was a month ago, I have done a blood test 3 days ago to see the results again and both my blood cells are still very low. Both doctors are giving more chances that this is caused by the pill and I will be good soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member irishsailor Posted May 25, 2014 Senior Member Share Posted May 25, 2014 I have done a blood test and both (red and white) blood cells are very low. My doctor told me its probably from finasteride. I was originally taking propecia for 8 months then proscar for 3 months cutting it in 4 pieces. Does anybody know if finasteride makes your blood cells very low? Do u know what yr blood work was prior to starting the meds? It may be a case of u always had a low count and nothing to do with propecia. I'm not saying yr wrong but if u didn't have a base line before then how can you be sure it's due to the meds? I hope you get things resolved though fella. Hair Transplant Dr Feller Oct 2011 Hair Transplant Dr Lorenzo June 2014 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member vettel Posted May 26, 2014 Author Regular Member Share Posted May 26, 2014 you have a very good point. its been a while since I done a blood test more than 7 years.I have checked and my red cell were low but not as low as now. NOW ITS MY RED AND WHITE VERY LOW. I think the best thing to do at this moment is wait and see if it will get better over time. Doctor told me that I cannot do any form of surgery at this point. My immune system its very week Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member Paulygon Posted May 29, 2014 Senior Member Share Posted May 29, 2014 How long has it been since you quit the meds? If that correlation is suspected by 2 physicians, quit it and monitor your levels.. Paulygon is a former patient of Dr. Parsa Mohebi My regimen includes: HT #1 2710 grafts at Parsa Mohebi Hair Restoration in Los Angeles in 2012 Rogaine foam 2x daily, since 2012 (stopped ~10/2015) Finasteride 1.25mg daily, since 2012 (stopped ~12/2015) HT #2 3238 grafts at Parsa Mohebi Hair Restoration in Los Angeles in Jun. 2016 Started Rogaine and Propecia in July. 2016 after being off of them for about a year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member mikeey Posted May 29, 2014 Senior Member Share Posted May 29, 2014 I have always Voiced my Dis-Pleasure regarding the use of Propecia .... I still get nervous when I see someone using it .... very Bad for the entire Body , it just upsets the Hormones beyond repair ... and Now this Cell trouble ... wow why do we need this pill in the first place ... better to have a Fue HT and leave everything and pursue Life ..... Most Baldies have HOT Gf's anyways ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member dannyboy785 Posted June 6, 2014 Regular Member Share Posted June 6, 2014 I have always Voiced my Dis-Pleasure regarding the use of Propecia .... I still get nervous when I see someone using it .... very Bad for the entire Body , it just upsets the Hormones beyond repair ... and Now this Cell trouble ... wow why do we need this pill in the first place ... better to have a Fue HT and leave everything and pursue Life ..... Most Baldies have HOT Gf's anyways ) But then you're like me where you get the HT but still are losing hair, then it looks really bad because of the noticeable split between new hair and previous hairline :mad: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member london81 Posted June 6, 2014 Senior Member Share Posted June 6, 2014 There are LOTS of things that can cause medical problems within the body and I feel people are sometimes far too quick to blame everything on Propecia. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member Paulygon Posted June 6, 2014 Senior Member Share Posted June 6, 2014 But then you're like me where you get the HT but still are losing hair, then it looks really bad because of the noticeable split between new hair and previous hairline :mad: what about maintenance procedures? aren't you planning on doing more HT to maintain an optimal look? Paulygon is a former patient of Dr. Parsa Mohebi My regimen includes: HT #1 2710 grafts at Parsa Mohebi Hair Restoration in Los Angeles in 2012 Rogaine foam 2x daily, since 2012 (stopped ~10/2015) Finasteride 1.25mg daily, since 2012 (stopped ~12/2015) HT #2 3238 grafts at Parsa Mohebi Hair Restoration in Los Angeles in Jun. 2016 Started Rogaine and Propecia in July. 2016 after being off of them for about a year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member soonsa Posted June 7, 2014 Regular Member Share Posted June 7, 2014 hmm maybe a rare interaction for some. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member mikeey Posted June 8, 2014 Senior Member Share Posted June 8, 2014 many stop propecia becos not of the sides , but becos it makes their hairlines just fly away .... I have seen guys who had a thinning hairline and with propecia they lost a sizeable frontal hair in a matter of 10 months ...... its sucks , and imagine the shed ... its too difficult to cope , I wish there was a decent alternative ..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member vettel Posted August 13, 2014 Author Regular Member Share Posted August 13, 2014 I can now confirm that Finasteride indeed made my immune system week and caused me other side effects because of this . After 4 months of stopping the pill my blood tests are normal again. Only thing that was low is PLT which was low since I was young. So I would strongly advise every body to take blood test before and after taking finasteride. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member England Posted August 18, 2014 Senior Member Share Posted August 18, 2014 A couple of notes in favour of Finasteride: 1 - If you did have an adverse reaction, you're probably in the tiny minority of patients who this applies to, and you have not seen continued side effects since stopping taking the drug. This is important, as people who do see side effects generally see them go away upon stopping use. 2 - How are you sure that Finasteride was causing the problem? There are thousands of causes of temporarily low numbers of red blood cells, which may well have affected you and could have gone away regardless of whether you stopped taking the pills or not. 3 - I've taken Finasteride for a decade now and my blood work is completely normal and has been through all stages. I've seen no noticeable side effects 4 - To the guy suggesting FUE as an alternative, it's only a good option when you supplement it with something like Propecia to prevent further loss. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member glocktop Posted August 20, 2014 Regular Member Share Posted August 20, 2014 Sorry to hear that vettel. Like England, I've also had my blood work done regularly (1 - 2x per year on average) for many years, and my docs have never reported any problems with blood cell counts before/after taking finasteride. I'm sorry to hear that is the case for you. Were you attempting to diagnose or treat a different illness that led to your discovery of blood cell counts? I'm wondering which is the cause and which is the effect. Also, it may be of general interest to you to read Dr William Rassman's July 5, 2014 post on his Balding Blog, in which he describes the difference between Propecia, Finasteride, Proscar, and Avodart. It doesn't address complications like blood cell counts, but it does provide general background which I found informative. NW5a, fin/foam/couvre 3801 grafts FUE, Dr Jose Lorenzo - Madrid, November 2014 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member hopingforhair Posted August 27, 2014 Regular Member Share Posted August 27, 2014 Every time I get close to thinking I'm going to start using Fin I read a post like this that makes me change my mind...Originally I was thinking I would just buy it off of a website but now I'm going to go to a doctor and ask to get prescription for it and if I can't get one I will at least ask to get a blood test so I can compare how/if it has effected me in 12 months time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brizz Posted August 27, 2014 Share Posted August 27, 2014 (edited) I too am thinking of making a start on using Propecia and am quite worried about the side effects. The recommended dosage is 1mg per day. Was wondering if taking 1mg every OTHER day, or 0.5mg a day would reduce the chances of any side effects. Edited August 27, 2014 by brizz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member hairweare Posted August 27, 2014 Senior Member Share Posted August 27, 2014 .5 mg of finasteride blocks approximately 50% of DHT vs >70% with a 1mg/day dose Side effects of a drug can be either dose dependent or idiosyncratic to a particular patient so the answer to your question is not black or white. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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