If you are taking Propecia, marketed by Merck to forestall hair loss, there is a new study that may give you pause.

The medical journal, Lancet Oncology, reports that this drug may prevent detection of prostate cancer. There is an active ingredient in Propecia that may artificially lower the important PSA levels that indicate the possibility of prostate cancer. Check with your doctor about your PSA levels and whether your Propecia use can be affecting the test’s outcomes.

I guess less hair but longer life due to early detection of prostate cancer might be a fair trade off.

Finasteride (brand name Propecia�) is an orally administered medication for male pattern hair loss (MPHL). It is the only specific MPHL treatment approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for prescription by a physician. Several years of investigation and use by more than a million patients show that finasteride has long-term effectiveness and safety in treating MPHL in men of all ages and all ethnic backgrounds. Finasteride is sometimes used alone or in combination with minoxidil (see Using Minoxidil (Rogaine)) to complement hair transplantation. Finasteride is not recommended for use in women.

Finasteride’s effects in slowing hair loss and stimulating new hair growth work best for early to moderate degrees of hair loss. Men with extensive hair loss are unlikely to experience much regrowth with finasteride; these men are better candidates for hair transplantation or other surgical approach to hair restoration.

Finasteride is most effective in stimulating hair regrowth over the crown of the scalp. It is less effective in stimulating regrowth at the front of the scalp-where hair loss is commonly called a “receding hairline”. Physician hair restoration specialists may prescribe finasteride to prevent further hair loss by the patient, and carry out hair transplantation to provide coverage at the frontal hairline.

Finasteride: How It Works

Finasteride works at the molecular level to halt hair loss and stimulate new hair growth. It is a medication that selectively inhibits the activity of an enzyme that converts the “male hormone” testosterone into a form that is active in hair follicles.

Androgenic (”male”) hormones such as testosterone have multiple effects in the body, including actions in the skin, hair follicles and prostate gland. Hair follicles and sebaceous (oil-producing) glands in the skin are particularly responsive to androgenic hormones.

Testosterone is the most potent of the androgenic hormones. Its actions on hair follicles, skin and prostate tissue is not direct however; These tissues are responsive to a form of testosterone called dihydrotestosterone (DHT); testosterone is converted to DHT by the enzyme 5-alpha-reductase. Finasteride acts by inhibiting the action of 5-alpha-reductase and thus inhibiting the conversion of testosterone into DHT.

Generic Name: DUTASTERIDE - ORAL

This medication is used to shrink an enlarged prostate in men with a condition called benign prostatic hyperplasia. It works by lowering amounts of the hormone responsible for prostate growth (dihydrotestosterone). Dutasteride reduces urinary blockage and improves urine flow.

How To Use Avodart Oral

Take this medication by mouth once daily, with or without food. Swallow the medication whole.

Use this medication regularly in order to get the most benefit from it. Remember to use it at the same time each day. It may take 3 to 6 months before you notice an improvement of your symptoms.

This leaflet contains important information about Avodart 0.5mg soft capsules (referred to as Avodart from now on).

It is very important that you read this leaflet carefully before you start taking this medicine to make sure it is right for you.

The leaflet contains the following information about Avodart:

• 1. What Avodart does
• 2. Before you take Avodart
• 3. Taking Avodart with other medicines
• 4. How to take Avodart
• 5. If you take too many Avodart capsules
• 6. If you miss a dose
• 7. When you should STOP taking Avodart and possible side effects
• 8. Looking after your Avodart capsules

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Propecia Drug Uses

This medication is used to treat male pattern hair loss,you can buy propecia cheap with us.

How Taken

Take one tablet daily or as directed by your doctor. This drug may be taken with or without meals. This drug usually must be taken regularly for 3 months for the benefits to be noticeable. Once treatment is stopped, any gain in hair quantity will be lost.

Drug Class and Mechanism

Buy cheap Propecia and  prevent the conversion of testosterone to dihydrotestosterone (DHT) in the body. DHT is involved in the development of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) and hair loss.

Missed Dose

If you miss a dose, take it as soon as remembered; do not take if it is almost time for the next dose, instead, skip the missed dose and resume your usual dosing schedule. Do not “double-up” the dose to catch up.

Storage

Store at room temperature away from sunlight and moisture.

Men now have another good reason to consider taking finasteride, a well-known generic drug that shrinks an enlarged prostate and reduces the risk of getting prostate cancer by 25 percent.

A new study from the Southwest Oncology Group strongly suggests that for men at risk of the disease - which strikes one in six men - finasteride also raises the odds that physicians will find fast-growing prostate cancers early, when they are most easily treatable.

It appears that a man concerned about prostate-cancer risk, who is having a PSA test on a regular basis, will not only reduce his risk of prostate cancer if he takes finasteride, but will help find the cancers that pose the highest risk, says Ian M. Thompson, M.D., the study’s senior author and a urologist at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio.

The new results, embargoed until 4 p.m. Sept. 11, appear online ahead of print publication Sept. 18 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

“This report provides an important interpretation of results that confounded an overall favorable interpretation of the Prostate Cancer Prevention Trial initially, and should help lessen fears that finasteride somehow causes more aggressive prostate cancer,” says Frank L. Meyskens, Jr., M.D., Southwest Oncology Group associate chair for cancer control and prevention.

The Southwest Oncology Group (SWOG), headquartered at the University of Michigan and one of the nation’s largest National Cancer Institute-sponsored clinical trial networks, conducted the study to further analyze data from its National Cancer Institute-sponsored 18,882-man seven-year Prostate Cancer Prevention Trial, which in 2003 found that finasteride was an effective prevention agent. The Food and Drug Administration has not approved finasteride for use in cancer prevention; the drug is approved for treating enlarged prostate.

Four years ago, Southwest Oncology Group researchers closed the Prostate Cancer Prevention Trial (PCPT) early to report very good news. Study results showed that finasteride, commonly used to treat enlarged prostate, could also make a man one-fourth less likely to get prostate cancer.

But that positive overall result - which potentially could keep around 50,000 men from developing prostate cancer each year - was clouded by a troubling finding: Men who took the drug but still developed prostate cancer by the end of the study had higher rates of detected high-grade tumors, an aggressive form of the disease, than did men in the placebo group.

The follow-up study, along with two others published recently, strongly suggests that finasteride makes it easier for physicians to detect high-grade cancers early by improving screening tests and prostate biopsy itself. The two previous studies show that finasteride improves the effectiveness of the two main measures of possible problems: digital rectal examination and the PSA (prostate specific antigen) blood test, which measures hormone changes associated with the disease. In some men who have low PSA test results, cancer is present but not found in time.

“Generic Finasteride makes the PSA test perform better, so we can find the cancer earlier,” Thompson says. “Our current study also shows that by shrinking the prostate gland, finasteride makes a biopsy more sensitive for any cancers that are present.” That increased accuracy is very important, he adds, because if a biopsy reveals a slow-growing cancer but fails to spot a fast-growing one, a doctor and patient may take a “wait and see” approach when prompt treatment is actually needed.

In part because of concerns about possible drawbacks, most urologists, when asked about finasteride, say they seldom prescribe it as a prevention drug, despite the positive 2003 PCPT findings, Thompson says. Now, with several studies allaying concerns about the drug’s possible drawbacks, including concerns about sexual dysfunction, Thompson believes men should be told routinely about the potential benefits of finasteride when they come to the doctor’s office for a PSA test, in much the same way patients at risk of heart disease are told about the benefits of statin drugs.

When the PCPT trial results were announced in 2003, it was unclear whether finasteride produced biological changes that could lead to more high-grade cancers. Researchers in the follow-up study analyzed tissue from biopsies and in men in the finasteride and placebo groups to compare hormonal levels and disease extent. They compared prostate size at the time of biopsy in the two groups. They also examined tumor grade and extent in men in the study who went on to have their prostates removed.

They found no significant differences in degenerative hormone changes when they examined high-grade tumor biopsies in men in both groups. However, the men taking finasteride had smaller prostates. Their biopsies correctly identified a higher proportion of high-grade tumors found later when their prostates were removed, compared to men in the placebo group.

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Regrowth - A total of 18 posters.
Plenty of people have regrowth already in just about 1 month, particularly in the form of tiny small hairs on the temples. The majority reported vellus hairs growing on the temples, a couple reported regrowth in areas that have been bald for years, and many said existing vellus hairs are darkening and there are definitely signs that hairs are becoming thicker and switching into terminal hairs. It appears that for the time being, the positive feedbacks are predominantly about regrowth on the temples, only a couple mentioned regrowth on the crown.

MAXIMUM EFFECT
According to Avodart or dutasteride’s prescribing information, the maximum effect of dutasteride can be observed within 1 to 2 weeks. “After 1 and 2 weeks of daily dosing with dutasteride 0.5mg, median serum DHT concentrations were reduced by 85% and 90% respectively.” It was further reported that test patients treated with a daily dosage of 0.5mg dutasteride for 2 years, the median decrease in serum DHT concentration was over 92% for both year 1 and year 2 of the 2-year trial.

Dutasteride is the first dual inhibitor of both 5α-reductase Types 1 and 2 isoenzymes, with efficacy and safety proven in 3 randomized placebo-controlled trials, each 2 years in duration. The current report demonstrates that longer-term treatment over 48 months with dutasteride results in continuing improvements in urinary symptoms and flow rate, and further reductions in total and transition zone volume of the prostate in men with symptomatic benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). The reduction in risk of acute urinary retention and BPH-related surgery, seen in the double-blind phase, was durable over the 4-year term of the studies. The incidence of new onset adverse events remained low during the open-label extension phase, and less than 1% of patients discontinued therapy due to adverse events. These findings combined establish that the disease-modifying benefits of dutasteride are durable in long-term treatment. Dutasteride was also well tolerated in long-term use, with no new safety issues emerging over 4 years of treatment.

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Synonyms: Dutas, Veltride
Avodart (Dutasteride) is an androgen hormone inhibitor used in men to treat benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) which is swelling of the prostate. This medicine works by lowering the amount of the hormone responsible for prostate growth. Dutasteride reduces urinary blockage and improves urine flow. This medicine should not be used in women and children.

Dutasteride(avodart) is an FDA approved drug for Benign Prostate Hyperplasia with positive effects on hairloss. Dutasteride, which is taken in capsule form, has shown dramatic success in restoring hair to bald men in trials. It interferes with the production of 5-alpha-reductase enzymes that break down the male hormone testosterone and turn it into dehydrotestosterone (DHT) - DHT causes hair to thin dramatically in later life. Dutas has better DHT supression results than finasteride both Propecia and Proscar).

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AVODART (DUTASTERIDE)

Avodart® (Dutasteride 0.5mg): The first dual-acting 5 alpha-reductase inhibitor for benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), approved by the FDA. Avodart® reduces the 2 enzymes responsible for the conversion of testosterone to DHT – which is a primary concern in hair loss. Where Propecia (Finasteride) only blocks one enzyme, by blocking both Avodart’s® result could be better. We can expect to see Avodart® officially on the market as a hair loss medication in 2006, if approved.

No word yet on Avodart® being approved for hair loss by the FDA. Avodart®, manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), was approved in February, 2002 by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), as a supplemental new drug application for the treatment of symptomatic benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) in men with an enlarged prostate. Dutasteride was originally assigned the tentative brand (trade) name of “Duogen.” The manufacturer GSK will market this drug, indicated for the treatment of BPH, under the name “Avodart™.” The drug became available in pharmacies in December, 2002. This new medicine for these patients will improve urinary symptoms, reduce risk of acute urinary retention (AUR), also reducing the risk of the need for BPH-related surgery.

General Precautions with Avodart:

Men taking Avodart should not donate blood until at least 6 months after their last dose to prevent pregnant women from receiving Avodart through a blood donation.

What should I tell my health care provider?

Tell your doctor if you have a history of:

• liver problems
• cancer of the prostate

Tell your doctor about all the medicines you take, including prescription and non-prescription medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements. Some medicines may affect how Avodart works or Avodart may affect how your other medicines work.

What are some possible side effects of Avodart? (This is NOT a complete list of side effects reported with Avodart. Your health care provider can discuss with you a more complete list of side effects.)

The most common side effects are:

• impotence (trouble getting or keeping an erection)
• a decrease in libido (sex drive)
• breast enlargement and tenderness (gynecomastia)
• a decrease in the amount of semen released during sex

Avodart medication (news)

Propecia or Avodart, which inhibits the hair loss causing effects of DHT best?

Hereditary hair loss will affect about half of the American male population. Luckily, in the past few years there have been drug treatments developed that can slow down, completely stop, or even reverse hair loss in some men. While there is still no cure, pills such as Propecia or Avodart have given many men hope for holding on to the hair they have and maybe even regaining some of what they lost. When considering a medicinal regimen, many hair loss sufferers find themselves asking which medication is right for them.

dutasteride avodart effects side

Benefit of Avodart hair loss and prostate and Avodart side effects

Clinical trials, sponsored primarily by the manufacturer, have shown Avodart to be a treatment for prostate enlargement and similar to finasteride ( Proscar ). Further studies are needed to gain a clearer understanding of any clinically significant differences between Avodart and finasteride.

Avodart or Proscar?
Avodart is a dual 5alpha-reductase inhibitor for the treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia. Avodart differs from finasteride as it inhibits both isoenzymes of 5alpha-reductase and results in near-complete suppression of serum dihydro-testosterone. Similar to finasteride, Avodart reduces serum prostatic specific antigen by approximately 50% at 6 months and total prostate volume by 25% in 2 years. Randomised, placebo-controlled trials conducted over 2 years have shown the efficacy of Avodart in symptomatic relief, and peak urinary flow rate, and reduction of acute urinary retention events and the need for surgery. The main Avodart side effects are erectile dysfunction, decreased libido, gynacomastia and ejaculation disorders. Avodart has been shown to possess tumor regression properties in vitro and its role in chemoprevention of prostate cancer is being evaluated in the ongoing Reduction by Dutasteride of Prostate Cancer Events (REDUCE) trial.

Dutasteride Avodart side effects
Possible side effects with Avodart are impotence (trouble getting or keeping an erection), a decrease in libido (sex drive), swelling or tenderness of the breast, and a decrease in the amount of semen released during sex. Avodart side effects could also include allergic reactions such as rash, itching, hives, and swelling of the lips or face. Another potential Avodart side effect is muscle aches. We have had 2 emails of this potential Avodart side effect and we can’t be sure the drug is responsible until we receive more information. See the bottom of this page for a fuller description of this Avodart side effect.
Lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) and male sexual dysfunction are highly prevalent in aging men, and are strongly linked. Various treatment strategies for benign prostatic hyperplasia may affect sexuality, with differences between drug classes and between drugs within a same class. The 5alpha-reductase inhibitors, finasteride and Avodart are associated with a greater side effect risk of erectile dysfunction, ejaculatory dysfunction (EjD) and decreased libido than is placebo. The Avodart side effect regarding sexual health is a concern for many men who are medicated with this drug. Passion Rx, Prostate Power Rx, or natural sex herbs could potentially be helpful in some men in reversing some of these Avodart related sexual side effects.

SIDE EFFECTS: Sexual problems (e.g., impotence, decreased interest in sex, decrease in the amount of ejaculate) may infrequently occur, but then go away as your body adjusts to the drug. This medication may also cause breast enlargement and/or tenderness. If any of these effects persist or worsen, contact your doctor or pharmacist promptly. An allergic reaction to this drug is unlikely, but seek immediate medical attention if it occurs.

PRECAUTIONS: Before using this medication, tell your doctor or pharmacist your medical history, especially of: liver disease, urinary tract disease, prostate cancer, any allergies. Men taking this medication should not donate blood until at least 6 months after they have stopped taking it to prevent exposure through a blood transfusion to a pregnant female. Since this drug can be absorbed through the skin, women who are pregnant or planning to become pregnant should not handle this medication. Any contact with this drug by a pregnant woman could result in abnormal external sex organs of a developing male fetus.

Dutasteride

Dutasteride is a new drug prescribed for benign prostatic hyperplasia. Dutasteride has also shown very positive effects as a hair loss treatment for sufferers of male pattern baldness.

What is Dutasteride used for?

Dutasteride is a recently approved drug developed by GlaxoSmithKline. Dutasteride is a dual 5-alpha-reductase inhibitor that is indicated for the treatment of symptomatic benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) in men with an enlarged prostate to:

• Improve symptoms
• Reduce the risk of acute urinary retention
• Reduce the risk of the need for BPH-related surgery

Dutasteride is currently in trial phase for the treatment of alopecia (hairloss).

Dutasteride Side Effects

Dutasteride side effects are usually mild and transient. Drug related adverse effects of dutasteride certainly appear to be less than those associated with finasteride. The most common side effects of dutasteride are sexual effects including:

• impotence
• decreased libido
• ejaculation disorders
• gynecomastia (breast tenderness)

Dutasteride side effects discovered in a clinical study are summarized in the table below. Approxiamtely 6% of each group (dutasteride and placebo) withdrew from the study due to adverse events, with the investigator attributing less than half of these withdrawals to drug related adverse effects.

Dutasteride is the generic name for a new dual 5 alpha-reductase inhibitor made by GlaxoSmithKline. The drug is set to be marketed under the name Avodart™ in the US and Avolve™ in Europe in December 2002.

The FDA has approved Dutasteride for treating BPH (Benign Prostate Hyperplasia), the same condition that Proscar™, by made Merck, is used for. Dutasteride like Finasteride, the active ingredient in Proscar and Propecia, also has the added benefit of being able to be used to treat genetic hair loss in men also known as MPB or Androgenic Alopecia.

The difference between Dutasteride and Finasteride is that Dutasteride inhibits the activities of both the type 1 and type 2 5AR enzymes unlike Finasteride which only inhibits type 2. These enzymes are responsible for the conversion of testosterone into DHT (dihydrotestosterone). DHT is the primary cause of prostate growth and hair loss and Dutasteride decreases levels of DHT by 90 percent after only two weeks making it a much more powerful weapon against hair loss and BPH.

Dutasteride.org is a site dedicated to providing you with up-to date information about the use of Dutasteride for BPH and Androgenic Alopecia. It’s important to note that the FDA has not approved Dutasteride for the treatment of hair loss but Glaxo has completed Phase 2 trials for its use in treating hair loss.

The 5-alpha-reductase (AR) inhibitors, finasteride and dutasteride, are indicated for the reduction of clinical progression of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). These agents are also thought to prevent the onset of prostate cancer, although some controversies exist regarding this issue and study data are still pending. In this interview, Steven A. Kaplan, MD, Chief of the Institute of Bladder and Prostate Health at Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY, discusses the current role of the 5-AR inhibitors in the prevention of prostate cancer and some of the issues relevant to clinical practice. Medscape interviewed Dr. Kaplan at the recent American Urological Association Meeting, held in Atlanta, Georgia.Medscape: How has the role of 5-AR inhibitors in prostate cancer prevention advanced in recent years?

Dr. Kaplan: The use of 5-AR inhibitors for prostate cancer has definitely evolved over the last 5-7 years. Data from the Prostate Cancer Prevention Trial (PCPT) comparing finasteride with placebo suggested that finasteride may decrease the incidence of prostate cancer relative to placebo.^[1] Thompson and colleagues randomized nearly 19,000 men to receive finasteride or placebo and found that finasteride was associated with a delay in the onset of prostate cancer. However, they also found that sexual side effects were slightly more common in finasteride-treated men. In addition, tumors of Gleason grade 7, 8, 9, or 10 were more common in the finasteride-treated group. This effect was originally thought to be one that was potentially induced by finasteride, but now I think we consider the finding to be a sampling error, essentially because it’s easier to find an appropriately staged graded tumor in a smaller prostate, ie, a finasteride-reduced or shrunken prostate than a larger prostate, and the initial analysis may have given the wrong impression.

Men and their physicians need not hesitate to use a drug proven
effective in preventing prostate cancer out of concern that it is
likely to cause sexual dysfunction, say authors of a study conducted by
the Southwest Oncology Group.

The authors, who surveyed more than 17,000 men 55 and older for seven years,

reported their results in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.
The study found that men given finasteride reported on average more
dysfunction than did men given a placebo. That small effect diminished
over the seven years.

The results allay concerns about a negative side effect associated
with finasteride up till now. Physicians usually warn that sexual
dysfunction is a possibility when they discuss the drug with patients. Finasteride
is an FDA-approved drug for the treatment of benign prostatic
hyperplasia, but it is not yet FDA-approved for the prevention or
reduction in risk for prostate cancer.

The study’s large sample and long follow-up period allowed
researchers to examine whether or not finasteride negatively affected
sexual function and, if so, whether this effect was lasting, said Carol
Moinpour, Ph.D., of the Fred Hutchison Cancer Research Center in
Seattle, the study’s lead author. She coordinates quality-of-life
studies for the Southwest Oncology Group, the nation’s largest National
Cancer Institute-funded clinical trials network.

The study grew out of the Prostate Cancer Prevention Trial, a large
double-blind National Cancer Institute-funded study which found that
finasteride, a drug which curbs the proliferation of prostate gland
cells, is effective at preventing prostate cancer in men age 55 and
older. The 2003 results of that trial, conducted by the Southwest
Oncology Group in more than 18,000 men, showed that finasteride could
reduce a man’s chances of getting prostate cancer by almost 25 percent.

The authors of the newly published sexual function results wanted to
assess how many men in the Prostate Cancer Prevention Trial reported
experiencing sexual dysfunction, and whether the problems decreased or
increased over time. In earlier studies, some men taking finasteride
reported decreased libido, impotence and other signs of diminished
sexual function. But these studies were short-term and didn’t try to
assess the effects of age and other health factors, as well as
individual variation.

“Millions of men may benefit from finasteride’s ability
to reduce prostate cancer risk,” said Leslie Ford, M.D., who oversaw
PCPT for the Institute. The nation’s number one cancer doctor,
Andrew C. von Eschenbach, Director of the NCI, called it a “landmark
study.” The story appeared on the front
page of the New York Times, and it was widely covered by other major
news agencies such as CNN
and The Wall
Street Journal. At the press conference, which will be available
online as a webcast for the next year, Dr. Peter Greenwald, Director
of Cancer Prevention for the NCI, said, “This trial proves that
prostate cancer is at least in part preventable. It is a huge step forward.”
On the day
of the NCI press conference, USRF Director Leonard S. Marks, M.D., appeared
live on CNN television to explain the importance of PCPT.

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