Exclusive: Merck anti-baldness drug Propecia has long trail of suicide reports, records show

[Boondocks]

(Reuters) - Newly unsealed court documents and other records show that Merck & Co and U.S. regulators knew about reports of suicidal behavior in men taking the company's anti-baldness treatment Propecia when they decided not to warn consumers of those potential risks in a 2011 update of the popular drug's label.

Internal records from Merck were made public in late January, when a federal magistrate in Brooklyn, New York, granted a 2019 Reuters motion to unseal 11 documents filed in years of litigation alleging Propecia caused persistent sexual dysfunction and other harmful side effects.

Since the 2011 decision on the warning, the FDA has received more than 700 reports of suicide and suicidal thoughts among people taking Propecia or generic versions of the drug. Those included at least 100 deaths. Before that, in the first 14 years the drug was on the market, the agency received 34 such reports, including 10 deaths.

Annual U.S. prescriptions of finasteride, as the drug is known, for hair loss increased to over 2.4 million in 2020, more than double the number in 2015, according to health data company IQVIA.

Exclusive: Merck anti-baldness drug Propecia has long trail of suicide reports, records show

Newly unsealed court documents and other records show that Merck & Co and U.S. regulators knew about reports of suicidal behavior in men taking the company’s anti-baldness treatment Propecia when they decided not to warn consumers of those potential risks in a 2011 update...

www.reuters.com

Damn.

 

[Deleted member 21709]

This is fucked up.

 

[gozu]

Absolute numbers mean nothing. Give us actual percentages. I've been taking it for 5 years and I'm still alive, but for how long?

 

[sir_crocodile]

(Reuters) - Newly unsealed court documents and other records show that Merck & Co and U.S. regulators knew about reports of suicidal behavior in men taking the company's anti-baldness treatment Propecia when they decided not to warn consumers of those potential risks in a 2011 update of the popular drug's label.

Internal records from Merck were made public in late January, when a federal magistrate in Brooklyn, New York, granted a 2019 Reuters motion to unseal 11 documents filed in years of litigation alleging Propecia caused persistent sexual dysfunction and other harmful side effects.

Since the 2011 decision on the warning, the FDA has received more than 700 reports of suicide and suicidal thoughts among people taking Propecia or generic versions of the drug. Those included at least 100 deaths. Before that, in the first 14 years the drug was on the market, the agency received 34 such reports, including 10 deaths.

Annual U.S. prescriptions of finasteride, as the drug is known, for hair loss increased to over 2.4 million in 2020, more than double the number in 2015, according to health data company IQVIA.

Exclusive: Merck anti-baldness drug Propecia has long trail of suicide reports, records show

Newly unsealed court documents and other records show that Merck & Co and U.S. regulators knew about reports of suicidal behavior in men taking the company’s anti-baldness treatment Propecia when they decided not to warn consumers of those potential risks in a 2011 update...

www.reuters.com

Damn.

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the hell

 

[Lube Man]

Absolute numbers mean nothing. Give us actual percentages. I've been taking it for 5 years and I'm still alive, but for how long?

Click to shrink...

Do you have any tendencies or off days?

 

[DronePhysics]

I stopped taking it because it killed my libido and general motivation.

 

[Jencks]

Can someone come up with a better solution that doesn't kill your dick? Seems like we would have one by now

 

[Airegin]

People who resort to Propecia like me often suffered low self confidence, anxiety and depression long before taking it.

 

[Boondocks]

Can someone come up with a better solution that doesn't kill your dick? Seems like we would have one by now

Click to shrink...

Acceptance of baldness.

 

[Illithid Dude]

I take propecia. Haven't noticed any side effects beyond my hair staying where it should. 700 out of 2.4 million seems like an absurdly low number.

 

[Dr. Zoidberg]

People who resort to Propecia like me often suffered low self confidence, anxiety and depression long before taking it.

Click to shrink...

Exactly, correlation is not causation.

The numbers as presented in this article really don't tell us anything definitive.

 

[exodus]

Is this causation or just correlation?

 

[Jencks]

Acceptance of baldness.

Click to shrink...

Fuck...

 

[Dis]

the hell

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I mean honestly this article is full of shocking stuff but that is one of the least shocking for anyone outside the USA who has seen how the usa regulators seem to know about problems in a lot of industries and don't do shit......we all saw how they handled the boeing issue, I have little faith to believe the fda is any better considering they've allowed untold damage to be caused for decades due to prescription drugs in the usa when they're the ones who should have known that information early if not before it released and stopped it.

 

[gozu]

Do you have any tendencies or off days?

Click to shrink...

Other than motionless staring at grey walls several hours a day and not remembering what a hard penis feels like, there are no side effects I can discern.

 

[theytookourjobz]

Exactly, correlation is not causation.

The numbers as presented in this article really don't tell us anything definitive.

Click to shrink...

Yea they need to look at the base rates of suicide and suicidal ideation in a similar age matched cohort of men who aren't taking the drug. This is obviously worth studying but this seems like bad science journalism.

 

[DekuBleep]

Do they get the same results for people who take a higher dosage because of enlarged prostate?

 

[LegendofJoe]

Acceptance of baldness.

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Yep, my hair has been slowly thinning since my mid 20s. Other than using hair thickening shampoo I've just accepted it. Just like my type 1 diabetes there's nothing I can do about it.

 

[Deleted member 6173]

Are they sure those suicidal thoughts aren't just from balding

 

[platocplx]

People who resort to Propecia like me often suffered low self confidence, anxiety and depression long before taking it.

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Yeah I'm curious to know and see the studies on it being a direct cause.

 

[NinjaGarden]

Observational studies like this are really useless. 100 deaths in 10 years is a tiny number versus the 2.4 million people a year taking it.

 

[Deleted member 19022]

I didn't realize I was actually taking this stuff at first glance (didn't know the brand name) but I am as part of my transition HRT cocktail since Sept 2019. I've had a two decade history of treatment-resistant severe depression before starting it though. I've been deeper in the dumps for the last several months because someone important to me decided to part ways and though I have veered into mild suicidal thoughts in a couple or so bad periods I was never anywhere close to acting on them. I'm having some trouble putting fault on the drug for these though. Since I started using psilocybin recently my depression and ability to make peace with the loss has been seeing a subtle but tangible improvement so far.

 

[Jakenbakin]

I don't know about "old" but I definitely read this when looking for balding solutions. (There was no solution I just have to accept being ugly)

 

[Twister]

Yeah, this is pretty well documented. I wanted to try this for my balding but I was told to absolutely not start taking the drug if I suffer from anxiety or depression, so I didn't take it. It apparently makes them much worse

 

[ToddBonzalez]

Been on it for a few years. Have some mild depression and anxiety issues, but that was the case before too.

 

[Kingasta]

This makes me more grateful for having won the gene lottery, male relatives from my mom's side are all fucking bald.

 

[tripleg]

Are they sure those suicidal thoughts aren't just from balding

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tf?

 

[Extra Sauce]

so does it actually work? I thought all hair loss drugs were a scam

 

[IneptEMP]

Acceptance of baldness.

Click to shrink...

Handwaving stressors for men and women alike with "just accept it lol" doesn't seem very helpful

 

[samoyed]

I imagine it is a mix of side effects and the depression/anxiety that would motivate someone to start this treatment in the first place.

 

[papermoon]

Can someone come up with a better solution that doesn't kill your dick? Seems like we would have one by now

Click to shrink...

Fecal transplant.

Hair regrowth following fecal microbiota transplantation in an elderly patient with alopecia areata: A case report and review of the literature

Alopecia areata is a hair loss disease associated with genetics, autoimmunity, and other factors. There is an intriguing link between alopecia areata and gut dysbiosis. Fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) has been recommended to treat Clostridium difficile ...

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Considering that noninfectious diarrhea in the elderly patient was mainly caused by gut dysbiosis, he was given six rounds of FMT. His diarrhea improved remarkably one month after FMT, with improved appetite and disappearance of abdominal pain, distension, and depressive symptoms. Surprisingly, he reported new hair growth on the affected region of his scalp, with some of his white hair gradually turning to black, without taking any other therapies for alopecia areata before and after [fecal microbiota transplant].

Click to shrink...

 

[Stick]

Handwaving stressors for men and women alike with "just accept it lol" doesn't seem very helpful

Click to shrink...

Yeah fuck that noise, I'm not gonna accept my hair falling out, and if I can do something about it I will. I've seen what I look like with no hair, it's not a pretty sight. Talk about a confidence killer.

 

[teseR]

Fecal transplant.

Hair regrowth following fecal microbiota transplantation in an elderly patient with alopecia areata: A case report and review of the literature

Alopecia areata is a hair loss disease associated with genetics, autoimmunity, and other factors. There is an intriguing link between alopecia areata and gut dysbiosis. Fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) has been recommended to treat Clostridium difficile ...

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Click to shrink...

Brb, calling my Doc.

 

[Bruceleeroy]

Can someone come up with a better solution that doesn't kill your dick? Seems like we would have one by now

Click to shrink...

Yeah I took Propecia or Fina for a couple years and it killed my poor fella

 

[Ali]

Since the 2011 decision on the warning, the FDA has received more than 700 reports of suicide and suicidal thoughts among people taking Propecia or generic versions of the drug. Those included at least 100 deaths. Before that, in the first 14 years the drug was on the market, the agency received 34 such reports, including 10 deaths.

Annual U.S. prescriptions of finasteride, as the drug is known, for hair loss increased to over 2.4 million in 2020, more than double the number in 2015, according to health data company IQVIA.

Click to shrink...

Numbers seem way too low to be too concerned imo. And I would think people taking medicine for baldness would be on average more insecure than the average person and possibly more likely to be depressed.

 

[Airegin]

Fecal transplant.

Hair regrowth following fecal microbiota transplantation in an elderly patient with alopecia areata: A case report and review of the literature

Alopecia areata is a hair loss disease associated with genetics, autoimmunity, and other factors. There is an intriguing link between alopecia areata and gut dysbiosis. Fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) has been recommended to treat Clostridium difficile ...

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Click to shrink...

Alopecia areata is not male pattern baldness.

 

[SneakyBadger]

I literally just got a prescription for this today. I already have a low libido so I'm not too worried about that, but I'm definitely gonna be vigilant about potential side effects.

 

[Fuchs]

Man, I must be one of the lucky few that don't experience any of the side effects. Oof

 

[Boondocks]

Handwaving stressors for men and women alike with "just accept it lol" doesn't seem very helpful

Click to shrink...

You can spend a lot of money fighting it or accept it as who you are.
Dwayne Johnson, Stanley Tucci, James Taylor, Ving Rhames, Jason Statham, etc are all bald. I really don't even take into account that they are bald. Friends in real life who are bald I don't even notice anymore.

 

[Johnny956]

so does it actually work? I thought all hair loss drugs were a scam

Click to shrink...

Yea it takes a while but it can work (takes a while). I'm approaching 9 months on it and no side effects for me and definitely is noticeable

 

[UltraGashInferno]

My ad for this thread is good

 

[Deleted member 46493]

Man, I must be one of the lucky few that don't experience any of the side effects. Oof

Click to shrink...

Yep same. I take finasteride, and never had any issues that I didn't have before. No sexual side effects at all.

My friend has taken it for ~9 years and he's had no side effects either.

 

[Dice]

My ad for this thread is good

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Do you just keep the egg there for a few hours or rub it into the scalp?
Asking for a friend.

 

[EJS]

Are they sure those suicidal thoughts aren't just from balding

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Shitty thing to say.

 

[Airegin]

You can spend a lot of money fighting it or accept it as who you are.
Dwayne Johnson, Stanley Tucci, James Taylor, Ving Rhames, Jason Statham, etc are all bald. I really don't even take into account that they are bald. Friends in real life who are bald I don't even notice anymore.

Click to shrink...

That's just tone deaf. Those people look great bald or have tons of personality to make up for it. Most average people are less attractive without hair. The fact that you don't mind unattractive people doesn't make that much easier to accept.

 

[Boondocks]

That's just tone deaf. Those people look great bald or have tons of personality to make up for it. Most average people are less attractive without hair. The fact that you don't mind unattractive people doesn't make that much easier to accept.

Click to shrink...

So you are calling folks with baldness "unattractive"? You are part of the problem.

 

[samred]

I have a friend who went on a psychotic bender after taking Chantix to quit drinking. He thought he was at his girlfriend's doorstep one night and began begging to be let indoors; turns out, he was at her neighbor's, who decided to exercise his "stand your ground" rights and shoot a shotgun through the door. My friend was killed instantly. Turns out he'd been having insane dreams for about a week before that.

Listen to the "warnings" any time you see a Chantix commercial. The most sinister ones were added after his death, with its makers scrambling to cover up that tragedy.

The guy in question was Carter Albrecht, a promising Dallas musician who'd become part of Edie Brickell's touring band while recording his own solid solo records. If you like Wilco-like stuff, his old bands Sorta and Sparrow are tricky to look up but they were a treat for a certain kind of music fan.

Fuck big pharma for committing to the carelessness that kills people and drives them mad.

 

[Feep]

So you are calling folks with baldness "unattractive"? You are part of the problem.

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Their response was ill-worded, but it's about how we perceive ourselves, dude. I perceive myself as notably less attractive with thinning or no hair (I had a bald cap on a few times for SFX makeup, so I know exactly how I look bald). You can tell us to get over it, but you'll find that with psychological depressors, *that is not an effective solution for fixing a problem*.

For the record, I had a hair transplant procedure, which is an extremely privileged thing to get...but for those wondering, it did basically work a miracle.

 

[TheLastYoshi]

Just the few folks in this thread who attest to Fins side-effect is enough to scare me away from it.

 

[Big Boss]

I take it and haven't had any side effects.