Rapid Hairloss - Post 6 years Propecia

[hairbrigade]

I was thinking finasteride inhibited about 70 percent serum and local DHT at the 1mg which still leaves a decent amount. Ive never been convinced T doesnt do anything and DHT is the sole culprit alone which is why something like CB or RU that competes with androgens would help a lot compared to just systemically lowering DHT but who knows I guess.

This is true. Personally, I've always been against non-approved drugs/treatments. It's been tough for me, being I had such great gains on 1mg Propecia for over 6 years. I feel the androgens have now become sensitive to the remaining circa 30% DHT. The hair on my vertex is ultra-fine and brittle to support this statement. The Nizoral has helped reduce scalp shine and I wish I discovered this earlier, but the jury is out on the Lazer Comb. People say I will get little extra benefit by upping the finasteride dose to say 1.25 or 1.5mg, and dutasteride I am unsure about.

The only cards I have left are to go on the Kirkland/Regaine Foam (as I did not get on well with the liquid) and possibly azelaic acid cream/lotion which I hear yields good results albeit intended for acne treatment. I will eventually get a FUE transplant or hopefully there will be some good news from Replicell on their Stem-Cell trials.

 

[g.i joey]

This is true. Personally, I've always been against non-approved drugs/treatments. It's been tough for me, being I had such great gains on 1mg Propecia for over 6 years. I feel the androgens have now become sensitive to the remaining circa 30% DHT. The hair on my vertex is ultra-fine and brittle to support this statement. The Nizoral has helped reduce scalp shine and I wish I discovered this earlier, but the jury is out on the Lazer Comb. People say I will get little extra benefit by upping the finasteride dose to say 1.25 or 1.5mg, and dutasteride I am unsure about.

The only cards I have left are to go on the Kirkland/Regaine Foam (as I did not get on well with the liquid) and possibly azelaic acid cream/lotion which I hear yields good results albeit intended for acne treatment. I will eventually get a FUE transplant or hopefully there will be some good news from Replicell on their Stem-Cell trials.

Dude I don't wanna advise against what your Doctor said but I think raising your dose by 25% could give that extra push for your hairs.. I've seen alot of anecdotal evidence that confirms that and I mean people see more regrowth with 1 mg than .5 so this has to work to some degree.. good luck bro.. my brothers been on finasteride same amount as you and is holding up strong.. but i do notice that his hair is beginning the diffusing again.. how fast it will go we will only see.. but my family has aggressive male pattern baldness too.. it slowly starts with recession and then between 21 and 24 our diffuse ness hits strong and by 24 were nw5.. so it could very well be that 1mg just isn't enough for an aggressive mpbers after a couple years.

 

[g.i joey]

How Should Finasteride Be Used?
Use as directed by your doctor.
Depending on the goal of using it, the dosage my vary significantly;

• For Hair Loss- generally, a dose of 1mg daily is very effective; however a dose of up to 2 mg is proven to be effective for its effect on the scalp. Doses above that have no real value or effect, as saturation of the receptors occurs at that dose.
• For BPH/ Enlarged Prostate- doses of 5mg daily, taken either as a single dose or in 2 split doses, have proven the best. As with the use for hair loss, doses above this are not effective.

I personally take 2.5mg of generic Proscar, every other day

SOURCE: http://www.gll-getalife.com/entry/finasteride-propecia-for-hair-loss

 

[xRedStaRx]

I was thinking finasteride inhibited about 70 percent serum and local DHT at the 1mg which still leaves a decent amount. Ive never been convinced T doesnt do anything and DHT is the sole culprit alone which is why something like CB or RU that competes with androgens would help a lot compared to just systemically lowering DHT but who knows I guess.

It's not like that.

How Should Finasteride Be Used?
Use as directed by your doctor.
Depending on the goal of using it, the dosage my vary significantly;

• For Hair Loss- generally, a dose of 1mg daily is very effective; however a dose of up to 2 mg is proven to be effective for its effect on the scalp. Doses above that have no real value or effect, as saturation of the receptors occurs at that dose.
• For BPH/ Enlarged Prostate- doses of 5mg daily, taken either as a single dose or in 2 split doses, have proven the best. As with the use for hair loss, doses above this are not effective.

I personally take 2.5mg of generic Proscar, every other day

SOURCE: http://www.gll-getalife.com/entry/finasteride-propecia-for-hair-loss

Don't think increasing the dose would do anything either.

0.5mg ED seems pretty close to peak inhibition at steady state.

 

[hairbrigade]

It's not like that.



Don't think increasing the dose would do anything either.

0.5mg ED seems pretty close to peak inhibition at steady state.

I've now decided to finally go and stay on the minoxidil. Been on the kirkland liquid once a night for last 3 weeks (big shed so far) and am looking to complement in the morning with a foam as the liquid is far too greasy. Only prob is I have quite long hair so the liquid is better to apply.

Still on 1mg/finasteride daily and x3 week Nizoral. The lazer comb in my opinion is a pile of rubbish! Been on it 4 months per manufacturers instructions (Hairmax) and its done little noticeable difference. The hair is still fine so its clearly not working and I will be returning for a full refund soon per their 6 month guarantee! It may work for some, but defo not in case of agressive balding where hair drugs are the only way to combat in my opinion.

I've ruled out dutasteride, and upping the finasteride dose beyond recommended 1mg is debatable (as you kindly point out) plus health considerations. I hear that finasteride comes in a 0.1% topical form which is interesting, could be a good way to complement the oral 1mg, but only product I can locate online is one which mixes it with 15% Minoxidyl (DualGen-15 NO PG Plus). Now a 5% minoxidyl with 0.1% finasteride would be interesting but I cannot currently locate.

 

[Wolf Pack]

Hi hairbrigade. I remember you posting ages ago on here. All the best with minoxidil. It's a pain and I can't bring myself to use it but may try it as well. I am a Norwood 2.5 on finasteride, this stuff works well but for regrowth most of us have got to give it that push with minoxidil or just go for a hair transplant!

I used laser for 10 weeks prior to starting finasteride. It was doing something, but seemed a very weak treatment. I didn't give it long enough but the studies show it isn't great anyway so I agree with you there too.

Keep us all updated. I hope you recover your crown (iirc) with minoxidil.

 

[hairbrigade]

Hi hairbrigade. I remember you posting ages ago on here. All the best with minoxidil. It's a pain and I can't bring myself to use it but may try it as well. I am a Norwood 2.5 on finasteride, this stuff works well but for regrowth most of us have got to give it that push with minoxidil or just go for a hair transplant!

I used laser for 10 weeks prior to starting finasteride. It was doing something, but seemed a very weak treatment. I didn't give it long enough but the studies show it isn't great anyway so I agree with you there too.

Keep us all updated. I hope you recover your crown (iirc) with minoxidil.

Hi Wolf Pack, thanks for your message. Fingers crossed for you on the regrowth too, finasteride certainly did wonders for my hair loss between years 1 and 6 I would say. Let us know how you get on also.

They say 4-6 months for the lazer to work in trials, I think it may have had a small impact on the front hairline but none or very little on the vertex (where my main problem area is). Will give it another month, it's just a very expensive device to keep unless noticebale gains are achieved (I bought the top-end HairmaxPro12 version). My vertex hair is very fine and easy to pull out, I really thought this hair would have thickened after 4 months of lazer per their clinical trials but I guess everyone reacts differently.

As for the minoxidil, yeah I've put it off for ages, largely as you say it being a pain in arse and also had some concerns over reported headaches and skin ageing etc. Not really seen any of these though thankfully (minor headaches initially). Its the second best hair treatment after finasteride so I thought I would give it a shot. Lots of shed in first 3 weeks but I undertand this is normal. Will certainly let you know if it does the biz!

I also think Nizoral 2% is a worthwhile addition and had no sides off that.

I'm with you on the Transplant! I would have one tomorrow if could afford it lol. My strategy currently is to try and 'buy' a few more years until either can afford a transplant or new cures are approved! (e.g. stem cells).

 

[GoldenMane]

Any new treatments currently in development are at least 5 years ago, then there will be another 10 years minimum before they start to become affordable for mere mortals. I wouldn't count on any new options becoming available to normal people with normal means for minimum 15 years. We have what we have, it's not perfect, but it's a lot better than what our parents and grandparents had. My grandad literally had nothing, no way to fight it, and it hit him in his early 20s. Must have really sucked for him. At least he found a nice wife and had a family

 

[jbrog1987]

Hi Wolf Pack, thanks for your message. Fingers crossed for you on the regrowth too, finasteride certainly did wonders for my hair loss between years 1 and 6 I would say. Let us know how you get on also.

They say 4-6 months for the lazer to work in trials, I think it may have had a small impact on the front hairline but none or very little on the vertex (where my main problem area is). Will give it another month, it's just a very expensive device to keep unless noticebale gains are achieved (I bought the top-end HairmaxPro12 version). My vertex hair is very fine and easy to pull out, I really thought this hair would have thickened after 4 months of lazer per their clinical trials but I guess everyone reacts differently.

As for the minoxidil, yeah I've put it off for ages, largely as you say it being a pain in arse and also had some concerns over reported headaches and skin ageing etc. Not really seen any of these though thankfully (minor headaches initially). Its the second best hair treatment after finasteride so I thought I would give it a shot. Lots of shed in first 3 weeks but I undertand this is normal. Will certainly let you know if it does the biz!

I also think Nizoral 2% is a worthwhile addition and had no sides off that.

I'm with you on the Transplant! I would have one tomorrow if could afford it lol. My strategy currently is to try and 'buy' a few more years until either can afford a transplant or new cures are approved! (e.g. stem cells).

Have you talked to a doctor that specializes in hair loss (hair transplant doctor, trichologist, ect)? They may be able to get into better insight into the nature of your hairloss and appropriate treatment. Honestly I believe supplementing your finasteride intake with dutasteride 2-3 times a week might do the trick but if you're not willing to risk unknown sides I guess riding out minoxidil is your best bet beyond hair transplant if it proves uneffective.. I do recall on Berstein medical the doctor says he increases finasteride dosage for patients that start to lose ground so maybe there is some merit to increasing the dose beyond 1 or 1.25 mg.

 

[hairbrigade]

Have you talked to a doctor that specializes in hair loss (hair transplant doctor, trichologist, ect)? They may be able to get into better insight into the nature of your hairloss and appropriate treatment. Honestly I believe supplementing your finasteride intake with dutasteride 2-3 times a week might do the trick but if you're not willing to risk unknown sides I guess riding out minoxidil is your best bet beyond hair transplant if it proves uneffective.. I do recall on Berstein medical the doctor says he increases finasteride dosage for patients that start to lose ground so maybe there is some merit to increasing the dose beyond 1 or 1.25 mg.

Hi. I've not spoken to any specialists (as yet). Personally, I would much rather slightly up the finasteride dose to say 1.25mg as opposed to dutasteride, being I know the drug better (side effects etc), it has prev worked and its approved. I am thus mulling with that presently.

However, I'm currently carrying on with 1mg/day and for last 4 weeks have been on minoxidil, and been on it twice a day for last 2 weeks so I'm hopeful that will work. I use liquid (kirkland)at night and foam (Qgain) in morning. The foam I use is great as it dries mega fast actually acts as a hair styling agent almost! Lazer comb is being sent back, was very dissapointed. Nizoral I'm not convinced but carrying on using x3 week.

If results are not seen in a few months then I will prob up the finasteride dose as you say.

 

[abcdefg]

Any new treatments currently in development are at least 5 years ago, then there will be another 10 years minimum before they start to become affordable for mere mortals. I wouldn't count on any new options becoming available to normal people with normal means for minimum 15 years. We have what we have, it's not perfect, but it's a lot better than what our parents and grandparents had. My grandad literally had nothing, no way to fight it, and it hit him in his early 20s. Must have really sucked for him. At least he found a nice wife and had a family

I dont know about that. Depends what it is. Invasive treatments like hair transplants that involved people will always cost a fortune because of the work and people. A drug could cost a lot less, and most new stuff will be non invasive drugs or topicals. Although they are always free to charge what they think they can. Look at that one drug that cures hep C it costs like 80 grand a year and probably cost like 10 dollars to make.
Drug companies scamming people with the prices is nothing new. Only congress can fix it and they never care

 

[Ratzeputz]

How did it go?

 

[abcdefg]

I don't know is it myth or true, But if this is true, that AR become more and more sensitive, than even castrated man would loose hair in the end since his AR would become so senstiive to remaining 15-30% of DHT.

Actually hamilton found that older men injected with androgens went bald very rapidly compared to younger men injected with the same. So as you age your hair for whatever reasons gets more sensitive to androgens. Maybe that is it, but we dont know for sure.
Also why does hair get sensitive in the first place? million dollar question we still have no clue