Perhaps "Useful Advice" isn't the proper introduction, when I think about it. Really, I don't want to tell anyone that my experience on Avodart will be your experience on the drug. Nor do I want to dampen anyone's excitement about starting this particular treatment. What I do want to do is share with you my experience on Avodart. My only motivation, I assure you, is my desire to help others who have been in my place and who feel the same sense of urgency I felt. The sense of urgency that led me to try Avodart...the same sense of urgency that subsequently led me to quit the drug.

A quick introduction-- I am a 25 year old young man from Minneapolis. In my early 20's I noticed the gradual process of recession at my temples. The process was rather slow, and considerable time might lapse before I noticed that my hairline had seemed to slide a little further back while I hadn't been paying attention. Only two months ago (roughly) I decided that I needed to try Avodart. Although my problem wasn't dramatic, I wanted to nip it in the bud, so to speak. So I began taking the .5 mg dosage once daily. I was very excited about the prospect of finding something that worked. My girlfriend and family can certainly attest to how the thinning process had bothered me (even though they always say I am crazy for caring so much!), and they were happy to see that I seemed very optimistic.

For the sake of all of our members who are interested in this drug, I feel compelled to let you know that my experience was very negative. Whereas others have complained of decreased libido anddifficulty achieving/maintaining erections, my issues are not sexual in nature (although I did experience softer erections in the first 1.5 weeks of treatment and annoying headaches). My primary concern, which serves as the reason for this post, is the significantly negative effect this drug can have on younger users who still have quite a bit of their hair. I used Avodart for about a month, before quitting it altogether. The only word I can use to describe the shedding that occured is "dramatic." I am not someone who likes to exaggerate for effect. And I value honest assessments of treatments. To date (approximately 2 months since starting Avodart), I have experienced a dramatic deterioration of my frontal hairline. The front/center portion of my hairline had certainly thinned over the years, but was never a real cause of concern. In just these two months, this area has thinned incredibly, giving the appearance of more univeral hair loss (because I wore my hair longer on top and parted to cover the temples). This thinning has occured along the whole frontal hairline. Additionally, my hair which is usually light brown has become significantly blonder--to the point that my parents recently asked me at dinner if I was coloring my hair. Even my girlfriend has been shocked by the color change. An unfortunate bi-product of the coloration has been that the lighter color of my hair seems to make the thinning appear more pronounced.

Due to the deterioration of my hairline, I discontinued use of the drug after the first month. I continue to experience shedding, and I am told this is due to Avodart's half life being rather long (months, in fact). Therefore, should you experience negative results like mine, you may have to wait quite a while for them to cease.

In the end, I just want this to serve as a word of caution. I have no doubt that many have experienced great results on Avodart, and I continue to believe that people respond to medication in profoundly different ways. Additionally, I am hopeful that something will come along that will demonstrate a higher level of efficacy. That being said, I am highly skeptical of Avodart's benefit to younger men who still retain a majority of their hair count. I know that if I could go back in time I would never have taken this particular drug. Hopefully, I can persuade a few of you younger posters to reconsider. Please feel free to contact me with questions. Also, I would highly recommend the posts of Justin_Sievers, whose advice seems well thought out and from the heart.

I wish you all the best,

FR

BballTC,

Thanks for a thoughtful first post portraying your experiences with Avodart. I want to take the time to welcome you to the forums.

Next, though it sounds like you now have a good bit of knowledge on the subject, it almost seems like you put the cart before the horse a bit. Many users of the drug have reported rapid thinning at the hairline and temples shortly after starting Avodart. The shedding is also commonly reported. WIth a little more research of anecdotal reports, you may have been able to save yourself some heartache by knowing the possible effects.

Avodart seems to be a drug that works wonders for some, well for others, bad for some, and damaging to still others. The spectrum is truly wide and can be confusing. Unfortunately, we have limited research on the medication die to GSK's decision to not pursue FDA approval for its' use for MPB. Thus, as you most likely know, it is not approved for the treatment of hair loss. Self-medication is never recommended and can result in disastrous consequences.

My own experience with Avodart in the first three months of use mirrors yours almost to the letter. I experienced a heavy shedding period and increased thinning across the entire scalp. Luckily, I have no other side-effects to report.

I was determined to stick it out, if at least for a while. After around 5 months on the drug, I was happy to see that there appeared to be less shedding. After around 8 months, I was confident that the shed hair had rebounded with a few friends.

I have now been on Avodart for roughly 10 months and I have no plans on discontinuing at this point. I have no side effects to report and my crown has thickened up well. I am keeping a sharp eye on my condition, but so far it is smooth sailing since the initial rough seas.

I am not advocating that anyone utilizes medication for any reason other than for its' intended purpose and without the strict supervision of a physician. I do feel that it is important to research options exhaustively to ensure that medicinal regiments used are right for the patient.

Good luck BballTC. By the way, did you ever try finasteride?

-Robert

Robert--

Thank you for the thoughtful response! It is greatly appreciated. If I had more courage, or was more willing to put up with the shedding cycles, I do believe that Avodart could prove beneficial in the long-term. That said, given the extent of my hair loss to date, I think I will wait a bit longer.

Also, I don't believe I mentioned this in my last email, but I am scheduled for a HT at Shapiro in October, so I will probably stay off meds altogether until that is completed.

In response to your finasteride--yes, I actually did try it. I actually have a rather sensitive condition called colitis, which is more or less an ulcerative condition. I have found that Lactose and many starches, even in small amounts, greatly aggrevates my symptoms. Propecia (and its generic counterparts) all use both lactose and starch as binding agents. Although I can't directly implicate these agents in my negative reaction to Propecia, I can only say that Propecia upset my stomach greatly, leading to worse digestion than I previously had. Therefore, I was forced to discontinue use after 3 months (I will say that I didn't experience any other side effects, and had no noticeable shedding). The stomach cramps and decreased digestion were problematic given my colitis. It is worth noting that Avodart (which utilizes a soft gel as opposed to the binders) never really upset my stomach after the first few days. If someone came out with a soft gell version of Propecia without lactose/sugar/starch, I would probably buy a lifetime supply!

Thanks again for your comments, Robert.

My best,

BballTC