9 ms·
FDA approves first systemic treatment for alopecia areata
- deleted 4y ago[deleted]
- meremortals 4y agoThis is great, but note that Alopecia Areata is different from male pattern baldness
- LewisVerstappen 4y agoYeah, but there is Finasteride for male pattern baldness which has fantastic results and is incredibly cheap (I got a 3 month supply for $12). A 10 year study published by the Tokyo Medical Clinic of finasteride carried out in Japan found that more than 99 percent of men with male pattern baldness experienced no worsening of their hair loss during treatment [1] Tons of additional clinical evidence showing that Finasteride works. [1] - https://www.researchgate.net/publication/337105943_Long-term_10-year_efficacy_of_finasteride_in_523_Japanese_men_with_androgenetic_alopecia https://www.researchgate.net/publication/337105943_Long-term...
- skrtskrt 4y agoThe key being that it doesn't give any hair regrowth in the vast majority of people, so you have to get people taking it before they see much balding, which is an interesting challenge - why worry about something you can barely see or notice until it's already a problem? There are ad campaigns from male order providers such as Hims and Keeps around this, I wonder how effective they are. I take it, and it stopped the balding progression as far as I can tell, but I had to get an FUE hair transplant to get some lost hair back.
- rjh29 4y agoI took it way too late and it didn't really help. I shaved after and I'm really happy with that decision.
- meremortals 4y agoSame. Not much, if any, regrowth
- mywittyname 4y agoThere's surgery to replace the lost hair (with hair moved from somewhere else, granted). It's certainly much more expensive than catching it early and treating it with minox or whatever, but it's within the reach of many people (<$10k).
- b112 4y agoI heard from a barber, that despite claims hairs from the back of the head are different follicles, and won't die off, this is all lies and marketing bs. So you need endless treatments, or else take testosterone blockers.
- rjh29 4y agoAnd you continue to recede so you will need follow-up treatments for that. If you're too far gone it's just not practical. It's a meme at this point, but for most people shaving their head is the right option.
- skrtskrt 4y agoWell 1. even back of head hair thins eventually in balding people, but generally many decades later than the front or crown. By the time you're losing that hair, you're probably a lot older and care much less 2. taking finasteride indefinitely is supposed to drastically slow or stop further thinning or loss. Of course as in point 1, you're probably going to lose that battle eventually, but again you'll be much much older when the damage gets serious than you would have been otherwise
- nayaketo 4y agoWhat happens to the old area from where the hair is taken?
- hiram112 4y agoIt's taken in small strips from the back and sides of the scalp which, for whatever reasons, aren't prone to the mechanisms causing male pattern baldness on the top of the head and hairline. So theoretically those areas where the hair was mined will now be thinner, but they do it in a manner that you'll never notice the decrease in hair in those areas.
- LewisVerstappen 4y ago> why worry about something you can barely see or notice until it's already a problem? So, you measure hair loss with the Norwood scale. You don't go from 100% hair to bald spots immediately. First, you'll see diffuse thinning where the thickness of your hair drops significantly. In the first stages of diffuse thinning, it won't be apparently to 99% of people that your hair is thinning but you'll immediately notice when you take a shower / apply shampoo (it's really obvious when your hair is wet). I'd say that's when most men realize they're losing their hair and that's when they should get on Finasteride.
- nsxwolf 4y agoIt may still be too late at that point. In my experience people who care about a man's hair (women, mostly) see hair loss as a binary thing - you either have a full head of hair, or you're balding. They don't see a guy in the earliest stages of hair loss and say "Oh, he's got a pretty decent Norwood score!", they say "he's bald". I've known two women that mentioned they'd rather date a man with a full head of hair who shaves his head than a balding man who shaves his head. I pressed it as far as asking "Well, what if they keep shaving it for life?" Same answer.
- skrtskrt 4y agoIt also depends on your head shape, I see a lot of men who are very good looking still with a fair amount visible recession, and they do quite well with their dating life. Personally I just felt like the relatively small amount of recession I had looked terrible on me because I already had a tall forehead to begin with, and I'm still in my 20s.
- cguess 4y agoTo be honest: most women care way less than you think. Personality trumps hair 95% of the time. A good barber can make you look good even with thinning hair, fine someone you like, stick with them, and tip well.
- hoveringcto 4y ago
- maerF0x0 4y agoiirc there's a largely genetic component to it, so one could simply proactively take it if they carry the genes. But the side effects can be unfortunate (depression, libido) . Seems like topical is better than oral.
- bennysomething 4y agoI've been on finastride for about 12 years. I'm never sure if it's working or not. Scared to stop! How well did the hair transplant work?
- skrtskrt 4y agoNever stop! Hair transplant worked really well. Natural-looking hairline, which is the most important part. You'll see a lot of before and afters where the hairline looks like a Lego block hair piece was snapped into place - choose your doctor carefully here. You'd only notice if you're looking really closely, where you'll see that the hairs are quite a bit thicker, as they were transferred from the back of my head where everyone's hairs are thick, but I have especially thick hair in general.
- bennysomething 4y agoThanks for this
- 01100011 4y agoOne thing I think worth mentioning is that you should anticipate having to get multiple transplants if you expect to have much future hair loss. I just saw a guy a few weeks ago who had gone mostly bald on top but had an obvious row of hair across his hairline. It looked like he had gotten a transplant early on and then didn't continue as his hairloss progressed.
- agent008t 4y agoGiven the potential serious, life-changing adverse effects that persist even after stopping use - no thanks. Just cut your hair short / shave your head.
- nsxwolf 4y agoWhat ever happened to toupees? Young men seem to not even consider them as an option, even though the quality is better now than ever.
- failrate 4y agoYou never notice the good toupees.
- rjh29 4y agoMaybe in the 70s/80s it was weird to be bald, but there are so many bald people now, it's like whatever. If you think I'm ugly or you're not into it fine, but there are plenty of women who are.
- the_only_law 4y agoI think it depends, bigger and stockier guys seem to pull it off pretty well. I don't think I could pull it off though, at least right now. I have a taller, lankier statue and I worry I'd look like a skinhead. I've seen some smaller guys pull it off as well, but they're usually shorter. Most guys that go clean shaven with my kinda build end up looking goofy. On the flip side, long hair on bigger guys always looks odd to me.
- deleted 4y ago[deleted]
- lolwutf 4y agoLeaving this here for other men who might stumble on this: Oral finasteride drives your DHT way down. However, driving DHT down is essentially the binary goal of stopping hair loss. And that's all fine and good, but having 'just enough' DHT is important for good health. (Psychology, sexual function, etc) If you're on finasteride, do yourself a favor and consult with a TRT ('low T') doctor, have your DHT level tested, and consider modulating your finasteride dosage according to its effect on your DHT level. A good balance is worth working towards. Don't blindly take finasteride without keeping an eye on its effects to your DHT.
- threads2 4y agoBe strong brothers. Turn to baldness. "I'm proud of myself, for the way I accepted my baldness." - Larry David, the president of bald people. https://youtu.be/Le4tih0tfbs?t=194 https://youtu.be/Le4tih0tfbs?t=194
- pstuart 4y agoFinasteride seems like a miracle drug (cheap and effective) but unfortunately is not without risk for some users: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22789024/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22789024/
- bamboozled 4y agoWhat about just accepting who you are and realizing that baldness is potentially even a blessing, less maintenance and if you're athletic, I think it's a good look, lots of women have complimented me on it since shaving my head and embracing it.
- LewisVerstappen 4y agoUmm yeah fuck that. I'd much rather pay $4 a month and keep my hair haha.
- koide 4y agoIs it more important than keeping your sexual function, though? https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22789024/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22789024/
- LewisVerstappen 4y agoSexual side effects are rare and I haven't experienced any. I also get regular blood work done so I can keep track of my metrics and my doctor will let me know if anything goes awry. So yeah, not really concerned and will definitely keep taking Finasteride.
- koide 4y agoThe point is that in all this thread, including in your previous comment, people are talking about it as if it had no possible side effects. So, great for you that you track your metrics and consult your doctor, but next time you stand behind a potentially devastating medicine, mention the downside and the care you take as well.
- redox99 4y agoSome people simply look better with hair than without. If you have no side effects, and it's dirt cheap, why not just take a pill a day and be done with it?
- avan1 4y agoi wish when people talk about Finasteride they always mention it that you won't be able to donnor blood after that. (FDA says you need at least 30 days Finasteride free for doing that)
- deleted 4y ago[deleted]
- blobbers 4y ago
- sabujp 4y agorelevant https://www.cnn.com/2022/03/29/health/what-is-alopecia-areata-wellness/index.html https://www.cnn.com/2022/03/29/health/what-is-alopecia-areat...
- takk309 4y agoIt will be interesting to hear how this drug impacts those with alopecia universalis, a sub type of alopecia areata. My sister has universalis from birth. I doubt she would want to do anything about it at this point, she is in her 40's.
- georgyo 4y agoMy sister, also now in her 40s, got alopecia universalis when she was 17. Truly tramatic to a teenager. The treatments at the time were mostly steroids, which did not help and caused all sorts of other problems. This is an immunosuppressant, so I am curious at the long term implications of this. The current list of side effects is pretty scary.
- takk309 4y agoYeah, for sure. I would imagine for those that have learned to live with it, the side effects won't be worth the benefits.
- wing-_-nuts 4y agoGiven that alopecia is a kind of autoimmune disease it makes me wonder if this can also be used to treat other autoimmune diseases as well? I know they previously had some luck treating alopecia with biologics for example.
- nonameiguess 4y agoThe announcement says this same drug was originally approved for treating rheumatoid arthritis in 2018, so apparently yes.
- markdown 4y agoHopefully psoriasis. Biologics are out of reach of most people.
- LosWochosWeek 4y agoWhat a coincidence. I just got my first appearance of alopecia areata (only one spot, has been there for 10 weeks now --- hoping more dont pop up). It's quite annoying. Unfortunately, living in the EU I'll have to wait for you guys to figure it out first. PS: Anyone in the know who wants to give me the straight answer to whether or not I should be expecting more holes to pop up?
- washedup 4y agoSample-size of 1 here: Yeah, I would prepare myself to see more. Mine came on kinda strong, both scalp and beard. Doing full shave now, still have eyebrows though!
- LosWochosWeek 4y agoMay I ask after much time had passed after you got your first hole before you got the other holes?
- jonlucc 4y agoYes, alopecia areata is generally a progressive disease. It might be worth discussing with your doctor early. I'm not too familiar with the European regulatory landscape, but I would guess any JAK inhibitor would need to prove efficacy in a European-listed trial of AA to seek approval there, and maybe you'd be a candidate.
- SoftTalker 4y agoI had it in my facial hair a few years ago. Two bare patches. My barber said it was likely stress-related (though I didn't feel stressed out at all). Then a year or two later it went away for no apparent reason. Nothing had really changed in my life that I could think would affect my stress levels. In other words, both its appearance and disappearance are a complete mystery. I also have almost no hair on my legs below my mid-calf, and I did when I was younger.
- Sateeshm 4y agoEvery few years I get a patch on my beard or hair that grows about 1.5 inches. But hair comes back in full in a few months, as if it never happened.
- xchip 4y ago- The most common side effects associated with Olumiant include: upper respiratory tract infections, headache, acne, high cholesterol (hyperlipidemia), increase of an enzyme called creatinine phosphokinase, urinary tract infection, liver enzyme elevations, inflammation of hair follicles (folliculitis), fatigue, lower respiratory tract infections, nausea, genital yeast infections (Candida infections), anemia, low number of certain types of white blood cells (neutropenia), abdominal pain, shingles (herpes zoster) and weight increase. - Olumiant comes with a boxed warning for serious infections, mortality, malignancy, major adverse cardiovascular events and thrombosis.
- yieldcrv 4y agoI wish that illicit scheduled drugs, like the ones legal at the state level, just had the mere standardized study for any side effect I hate that we are relying on anecdotes, and for recreational state level approval we have approved for every use case and that this is the best we can do while debating the polar opposite style of federal prohibition Federal FDA approvals for everything else are for a single use case or ailment at a time, and then we get all the side effects they found for an informed decision. States approvals have…. nothing. California industry just throws a random “maybe cancer” logo on it and calls it a day!
- zdragnar 4y agoThis sounds like the list of side effects you'll get with almost any immune suppression drug. Odds are good that you'll never see any of those side effects, but when you take a sledge hammer to something so foundational to how your body works to try to beat it into a different shape, you can expect the possibility for unpleasant things to happen. I was on an injection for a different disease with a similar side effect profile (sans high cholesterol and a few of the others) and (fortunately) didn't have a single side effect other than some swelling at the site of the first injection. Then again, I was taking it for something possibly degenerative (psoriasis with signs of psoriatic arthritis). I stopped around COVID time out of an abundance of caution, and the joint pain hasn't come back, so I haven't started up again. On the other hand, I certainly wouldn't risk it for something like hair loss. Getting a wig and some therapy (or even skipping the wig!) is a whole lot safer than potentially permanently upending your immune system. I hate how insensitive that sounds, but doctors really shouldn't be treating vanity with drugs like this.
- user3939382 4y agoI feel like there's a Jada Smith joke in here somewhere... I never heard the term alopecia in my life until that "slap" incident and subsequently heard it 1000 times in reference to that. Hard not to see this headline and think of it.
- nailer 4y agoJada Pinkett Smith doesn’t have alopecia, she has a facelift scar. https://youtu.be/DdPmmlvhpHk https://youtu.be/DdPmmlvhpHk
- gnicholas 4y agoThat was speculation by a doctor who hasn't treated her. Timestamped link: https://youtu.be/DdPmmlvhpHk?t=694 https://youtu.be/DdPmmlvhpHk?t=694
- nailer 4y agoThat is correct, however the doctor is a hair loss specialist (and also has alopecia himself, which I feel may mean he is quite familiar with the condition).
- gnicholas 4y agoAgree that he can weigh in on whether the scar is not alopecia, but less so on whether it is a scar (or from what). Also, he's not saying that the balding is from a scar, which was the impression I got when I first read your comment.
- nailer 4y ago> he's not saying that the balding is from a scar Yes he is. Watch the video again.
- cjbgkagh 4y agoThe video was pretty convincing. Looks way more like a scar than alopecia.
- swayvil 4y agoAfter perusing this thread, maybe the article too, head on over to reddit. Dimes to donuts a "hair loss remedy" advertisement pops up. Just a reminder, Google is watching.
- azinman2 4y agoIf you can help it, JAK inhibitors aren’t worth it. Side effects are super serious, like cancer. It’s a key part of your immune system. I’d rather have no hair than cancer.
- brailsafe 4y agoFinally, a glimmer of hope for Brian Armstrong.
- Arubis 4y ago
- here4funzies 4y agoHow did 5% of the 189 participant achieve adequate scalp hair coverage on placebo?
- Teever 4y agoIt's an autoimmune disease, so for some people it resolves automatically, or isminduced by stress, or comes in waves.