> baldness is treated before malaria because of... To be fair, the top two baldness treatments were side-effects of drugs aimed at curing more "serious" condi

> baldness is treated before malaria because of... To be fair, the top two baldness treatments were side-effects of drugs aimed at curing more "serious" conditions. Rogaine was first developed as a cure for ulcers. That didn't work, but the researchers noticed that it served as a vasodilator and it was sold as a treatment for high blood pressure. That didn't work out either, but researchers noticed one weird side effect... [1] Same for Propecia / Proscar, which started out targeted at prostate growth. It's effective at controlling prostate growth and in this case researchers realized that the same hormone channel that controls prostates (DHT) also affects hair loss. They then set out to find another way to monetize the existing drug. Attempts to target baldness only have struggled (there has been a line of smaller companies trying to get baldness-only drugs through trials, which have mostly failed.) [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minoxidil#History https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minoxidil#History [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Finasteride#History https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Finasteride#History