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Can I get a Hair Transplant if I'm a finasteride non-responder


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I've been taking finasteride for just over 13 months, and unfortunately I appear to be a non-responder. I'm below baseline (baseline was either NW2 or 2.5) and am now at NW3 - I'm still seeing significant loss of hair, including a lot of miniaturised hairs. For context, I'm 25 years old and have been experiencing MPB from a young age i.e. probably sensitive to DHT - hair loss runs in the family with most men at a NW6. If it helps, I have medium-thick calibre wavy hair.  My question is, can I still get a conservative hair transplant to maintain a nw2 or nw2.5? Is there hope my hairloss will stabilise? Is it worth keeping on finasteride to retain the mid and crown areas of my head, especially with new treatments in phase 2 and 3 clinical trials that may allow me to reverse some of my recession soon? I would really appreciate the experience of surgeons on here and what they've seen in their patients. 

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  • Valued Contributor

You'll ideally need to post photos for anyone - surgeon or otherwise - to offer more definitive answers to your specific case.

What I will add though is that in your mid 20's, your hair loss will be in its more aggressive phase. How aggressive yours is compared to another 25 year old is another question entirely, but that does mean that yes, there is at least some hope it'll stabilise or slow down, but everyone is different. I've been a Norwood 3 since my mid 20's and am now 32. I'm still a Norwood 3, but showing some signs of diffusion on top, but nothing too critical. More of a Norwood 3+! So my own hair loss is gradual. Yours may be more aggressive or a little more gentle - it's really very hard to say what pace your hair will decline at, but your family history is a reasonable indicator of where you'll end up.

Also, if you're not seeing any negative sides from the finasteride, stick with it  - it may help you further down the line, or it may well have helped slow down the losses you've been getting already. For all you know, your could have shed even more hair without the finasteride.

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  • Senior Member

I personally would avoid a hair transplant until your hair loss has stabilized. If you get one now and your hair is effectively restored, it could look really bad in 5 years (or less) if your hair loss progresses. 

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  • Administrators

Just because you’re losing hair doesn’t mean you’re a non-responder. Finasteride can stop, slow, and rarely regrows hair. Slowing hair loss is better than nothing. 


I’m a paid admin for Hair Transplant Network. I do not receive any compensation from any clinic. My comments are not medical advice.

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