I have been diagnsed with an aggressive large-cell non-Hodgkins lymphoma and received chemotherapy from June until September. My chemo included Adriamycin. I had two hair transplant procedure years ago and they have thinned. What should I do?
It might be worth trying minoxidil topically on the area where you lost hair. You will have to give it 8-12 months to see a benefit.
2017-05-02 09:26:282017-05-02 09:26:28Diagnosed with cancer and treated with chemotherapy, now have hair loss
Dear Dr:
First, I would like to say thanks for this web site of yours. you’re one of the few sources of hair loss info that i trust. keep up the good work.
my question: what, if anything, do you know about Procapil (www.procapil.com/index/html)? there is a brand of hair care products on the market called MiN New York (www.min.com) and they all contain several DHT-blocking ingredients — copper peptides, saw palmeto, etc. — and Procapil. any thoughts on this company and their products? also, i have read some info re: Nizoral and how it may help regrow hair as well as Rogaine. is this true?
Nizoral contains a drug used to treat a variety of fungal infections of the scalp. So many people think that it is the magic shampoo for hair loss. If it is, there is far more fungal infections than I ever thought amongst the population. Many ingredients like copper peptides and saw palmetto claim DHT blocking capability, but they are poorly documented at doing just that. If saw palmetto is a DHT blocker, it is a weak one. Copper peptides are not DHT blockers.
Procapil reports that it is a patented plant complex that repairs, nourishes and prolongs the hair cycles of the telogen phase of hair growth. There are claims as well that it is a DHT blocker. In my opinion, none of this is scientific or can be substantiated to meet my standards. Again, I warn every reader that this is a ‘Buyer Beware’ business and many people make good money on promotions that may not have good scientific data presented.
Dear Dr. Rassman,
I am a 32 year old male with Norwood class 3.In December beginning I had started Propecia and continued with it for 7 weeks. I experienced no apparent side effects and in fact felt more energetic. There was no initial hair loss and at end of 3 weeks my hair felt fuller and it seemed that there was a decrease in hair loss ( lose fewer while combing/shampooing ).
During the 7th week a test revealed some of liver function indicators were elevated:
Value Range
A/G RATIO 1.29 1.2-2.0:1
SGOT(AST) 45.00 U/L 10 – 42
SGPT (ALT) 74.20 U/L 10.00 – 47.00Subsequently, while still on Propecia, I also got these tested for
TESTOSTERONE 708.0 ng/dl 166 – 877 ng/dl
FREE TESTOSTERONE 4.88 pg/ml 4.25 – 30.37 ng/dl
DI-HYDRO 522.3 pg/ml 250 -990 ng/dl
TESTOSTERONEA couple of years back testing for DHT had revealed that it was 3 times the upper limit. I was not treated for it.
I would really like to get back on to Propecia. Do you have any insights why SGOT/SGPT are elevated ( A few weeks before starting my Doctor had gotten me tested and LFT were normal then ) ? Could conversion of excessive DHT to Testosterone have caused such ? Would it be safe for me to restart Propecia ?
Regards
This is a question you need to ask your doctor. There are many possible factors that could be in play:
miniaturization study, not a lab test. I understand there are now genetic tests that can give you a “probability” score for androgenic alopecia, but sometimes even genetic testing does not really change the medical course of action.
One particular 18 year old patient I recently saw paid a few hundred dollars for genetic testing for androgenic alopecia at another medical group. The results were mailed to him and according to what he said, the doctor never followed up with him. He had no sign of balding, no hair loss, and no miniaturization. He had the test done because his grandfather was bald and he was afraid of going that same route. His results showed a “probability” of androgenic alopecia, but all it really did is tell him that he was carrying the gene for balding. Just carrying the gene does not mean that the gene will be expressed, as some men who carry the gene never go to clinical balding. The report given to him got him extremely worried and instead of following up with the medical group (who tried to sell him shampoos and lasers) he came to see me.
In my opinion, in this particular case the genetic test was a source of misery and misrepresentation. Sure, there may be a possibility that he may lose hair to some degree and have androgenic alopecia in his future, but I did not recommend any course of action (not even Propecia) for him, as he had absolutely no sign of balding or miniaturization.
2010-02-17 15:35:362010-02-16 13:30:40Did Propecia Elevate My SGOT and SGPT (Liver) Levels?
can propecia cause constipation? thanks
This side effect is not published anywhere, so I would doubt a connection. You should look to other causes.
I know you have a scalpmicropigmentation.com site, but I saw other companies and websites on the Internet using SMP with a trademark sign or a registered sign. Did you invent SMP or are you using SMP without permission?
The technique of micropigmenting the scalp has been around for many years, but it has not been widely referred to as “Scalp MicroPigmentation” until a few years ago (since 2010). When we first entered the pigmentation market back in 2010, we tried to come up with various names for the process, such as scalp tattooing and scalp micro tattoo. Dr. Pak came up with the term “Scalp MicroPigmentation” in early 2011, which we abbreviated to SMP. We figured it was a good, catchy term and built our marketing based on this new naming.
We even hired a lawyer to file a U.S. Trademark with the Patent office, but the SMP trademark was rejected on the basis that it was a common descriptive term that was abbreviated. We do own the scalpmicropigmentation.com domain, but anyone can use the SMP terminology. Legally, you cannot place a trademark or registered sign after it. I realize other companies shamelessly do this, but that is false advertising and representation. It’s akin to putting a ™ or ® after the words “computer” or “automobile”. Anyone can use the the abbreviation “SMP” and it is not a brand.
In the end, we are happy that the terminology of “SMP” and “Scalp MicroPigmentation” caught on. If anything, it gives us passive exposure for the small investment we made on purchasing the domain name.
Can I donate a kidney if i’ve been taking propecia/finasteride for the last 2 years?
I do not see why not, but you should ask your transplant surgeon or transplant coordinator as they would be better aware these things.
2010-10-11 08:46:082010-10-07 14:24:30Propecia and Organ Donation
Is it the occurrence of shedding all over the top of the scalp? From what I understand there are two major camps of hair loss suffers, the diffusers and the miniaturizers… and sometimes both. But anyways what exactly is diffuse thinning? I get mixed answers all over the place
Hi Dr. Rassman,
i am following up on a previous message i sent. I am wondering if you know of anyone who after taking propecia(finasteride) found the following symtoms- tinnitus with an overall feeling of pressure in the head. I only took the drug for two weeks and then stopped after these symtoms appeared. I am still suffering with this six months later. I had these same symtoms five years ago, (but was not taking propecia at the time) which lasted for one year and am wondering if the propecia could have triggered this again as it is used as a blocker, or might it just be a coincidence.
Hope you can answer this for me, thanks!
I do not know what may be the cause of your problem. While many drugs can cause tinnitus, it is relatively rare. More importantly, tinnitus can potentially be a sign of serious medical problems and suggests to me that you have some medical issue which needs to be addressed by an expert in middle ear problems. I personally have not seen any patients in the last 10 years with tinnitus as a side effect of Propecia. I’ve been asked about this once before, a couple of years ago — Propecia Causing Tinnitus?
2008-07-24 12:35:152008-07-22 09:58:40Propecia and Tinnitus
Below is the conversation I had with another reddit user in this post regarding finasteride. I would greatly appreciate your feedback regarding what he said. Is it true?
Me: I’m 7 months with no noticeable improvements. It may take up to 2 years for improvements, but we’ll see
Him: Thats not true the peak at 2 years mark , but thats only if u saw any improvment by 6 month mark
Me: At year 2, almost 20% more saw regrowth according to the FDA-supported study. So yeah…it may take 2 years to notice improvement. Never heard of the 6 month statement. How do you know that?
Him: Lol trust me the brother. I have no reason to let you down. If u got nothing by now. You are not gona get any after. I mean if you are stable be happy.
Me: The research contradicts you
Him: U clearly didnt understand
Me: Please explain then and where you got that info from. I want to learn
Him: There a huge missleading about the fda reaserch. They mention that the the peak of the result were on 2 years mark. But those ppl kept improving since day one up to 2 years. Its not like after 1 year the regrowth start to accure. After 1 hair cycle u should see some results if u respond with regrowth.
My opinion is:
2020-04-06 03:33:392020-04-03 12:40:12Discussion between two men on Reddit about finasteride
Hi Doc,
Couple questions:
- Is 37 too late to take propecia (I hear its less effective as we get older)?
- I suffer an ironic twist of fate – have too much body hair (back, shoulder, chest, etc) and thinning head hair (MPB). Can I use FUE to remove the body hair (even if I dont want to use it on my head – i.e. just want to permanently get rid of it).
- Finally, if I am travelling to visit your clinic for a procedure from an international location, is there any rebate/discount?
Thx!
2009-06-04 12:31:552009-06-02 09:29:06Propecia, Hair Removal, and Travel Discount?
