UK News ~ New Finasteride Health Warning

[Chrissty]

So Fin' was back in the news over here in the UK last week.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/6720750/Drug-for-enlarged-prostate-linked-to-male-breast-cancer.html

Now they are adding the risk of breast cancer to the contraindications here, after the MHRA has disovered that 53 men worldwide (5 in the UK) have developed symptoms.

What is not clear, is whether the cancer is due to the drug, or was an existing condition spotted because of the increased breast health monitoring... 

So I guess the main thing is to keep checking the "girls" regularly if you ar on Fin', but then we should be doing that anyway ? 

Chrissty

[Virginia87106]

I have a friend in the UK and she takes 5 mg or more of Finasteride daily, where from the research I have seen a more appropriate dosage is below 1 mg. 
I am not recommending ANY dosage, that is up to you and your DR. just that UK doctors seem to have prescribed higher dosages that US doctors.

[Kay]

I'll have to disagree with this Virginia (I live in the US), from my own experience. 
.
As far as my doctor explained it, the higher dosage level of Fin (5mg) is generally prescribed for enlarged prostate, and the lower dosage level (1 mg, also known as Propecia) is generally prescribed for hair issues.  The lower dosage isn't generally covered by insurance because of this (being classified as not medically necessary due to its typical usage), but the larger dosage is often covered under insurance. 
.
In-and-of-itself, that's not a good reason for prescribing the higher dosage.   But from there it's all about the ever individualized risk/benefit ratio. A higher dosage is generally always higher risk...which is why it's important to have a professional do the balancing for you.  But for the record, the docs here in the US prescribe the higher dosages too.
.
BTW...what research are you speaking of?  Most reasearch I've seen is general clinical stuff (like http://www.rxlist.com/proscar-drug.htm)  that, while very interesting and informative, isn't the most directly applicable to my situation.
(I'm starting on hormones in a month, and could use a good read if you have something you could refer me to.  Thanks.)

[Arch]

I'll have to disagree with this Virginia (I live in the US), from my own experience. 
.
As far as my doctor explained it, the higher dosage level of Fin (5mg) is generally prescribed for enlarged prostate, and the lower dosage level (1 mg, also known as Propecia) is generally prescribed for hair issues. 

Cripes, I was going to talk to my doc about taking Fin for my apparent hair loss. I already pay out of pocket for T, endo visits, and therapy, not to mention what I paid for top surgery last summer. Plus now I'm having trouble getting a, uh, chest ultrasound approved. I figured at least the Finasteride was one thing that would be covered by insurance. And now you say it isn't. I'm wondering why I have insurance at all. When my divorce goes through, I'll be eligible for COBRA for three years, at $450 a month if the premiums don't go up. But practically none of my expenses is covered. What's the point?

How much does this stuff cost at the lower dosage, anyway? I guess I should be able to get a ballpark if I do some googling...

[jesse]

hey arch you can check inhousepharmacy.com the costs of meds are significantly lower then us pharmacys if you must pay out of pocket for them. '
jessica

[Autumn]

A one month supply of propecia used to cost me $66/month, since insurance didn't cover cosmetic stuff of course.

You can buy it online much cheaper. Or buy proscar and split it, which is what a lot of male health forums talk about. Although I don't know if proscar is manufacturer-split in half or in quarters, or at all. It's a bitch to split non pre-cut pills. When they fracture all over you have wastage and unequal doses and you want to make sure you have similar doses for a long term script like hair loss prevention. You must also stay on the drug consistently or you will lose most of the progress you make and be set back quite far. That is another advantage to managing your own supply versus picking it up over the counter one month at a time.

I personally found that the Propecia solution did not work well enough for me and instead switched to buying generic dutasteride from overseas, which while being more effective, was also less than half the cost of prescription Propecia in the USA.


*Finasteride is a not a strictly HRT drug, it is used for treating cancer along with widespread USDA sanctioned cosmetic usage. I am not promoting DIY HRT practices. A cosmetic dose of finasteride by itself does not constitute a hormone regimen and will do nothing towards transition except stave off hair loss, as thousands of straight cis-males take it every day.

[Chrissty]

Reading "between" the lines, the version they are talking about in the article is the 5% Propecia style pill normally used for enlarged prostrate treatment......

...now as Autumn says, this is often used in association with cancer treatments, so the whole idea that some patients on the drug may develop cancer is not all that surprising.

...but that doesn't stop a warning going on al the UK packets anyway.

The aspect that is more concerning, is that there have been reports the drug can disguise the initial symptoms of cancer, and so like I originally said.. be safe and do regular exams.

The 1% pill is just that.. a pill...The splitting thing is where people who want a low cost 1% version are trying to split the 5% pills, and it is not done commercially. This method is not advisable because of the difficulties involved (the pills are more likely to shatter than cut) , the potential risks to others from the residues, and the fact that a months supply of 1% online is only around $13.

Chrissty

[cynthialee]

It's a bitch to split non pre-cut pills. When they fracture all over you have wastage and unequal doses and you want to make sure you have similar doses for a long term script like hair loss prevention.

Go to ANY pharmacy. Ask an employie were they keep the pill cutters. Follow said person to the area. Choose a pill cutter from the limited selection. Buy it. Tada. No more accidental shrapnelizing of your medication.

[Seshatneferw]

At least over where I live, the 1 mg pills are inordinately expensive because there isn't any competition. The only brand available is Propecia, at about $70 / month, while generic 5 mg pills are something like $20 / month. Since the latter are marketed as a prostate instead of hair loss drug, depending on what is written on the prescription one may not have to pay all of it.

As Cynthialee wrote, pill cutters are readily available at pharmacies. On the other hand, there are rather severe warnings that bits of a broken pill must not come into contact with a fertile female, and even that a man taking the pills should use a condom when having sex with a pregnant woman. This, they say, is because even tiny amounts of finasteride can cause some intersex conditions in genetically male babies. I'd really like to see some estimates on how big the risk is...

With regard to the original article, it isn't too surprising. Oestrogen increases the risk for breast cancer, and 5-alpha-reductase blockers increase the amount of oestrogen (after all, if the testosterone isn't converted to DHT some of it will be converted to oestrogen instead). Whether the increase in risk is something to worry about is another matter, but for people with an already greater hereditary risk it may well be. Speaking for myself, a slightly bigger risk of breast cancer is a price I'm willing to pay for having breasts.

  Nfr