Welcome

The Post-Finasteride Syndrome Foundation’s primary mission is to facilitate research on the characterization, underlying biologic mechanisms and treatments of post-finasteride syndrome (PFS). Other goals include generating public awareness of PFS and providing support for patients suffering from the condition.

Read our FDA Citizen Petition to remove finasteride from the market.

Read all unsealed documents in the US Propecia litigation.

Adverse drug reaction reports worldwide

PFS research studies published

Known suicides worldwide

Doctors & researchers speaking out

Nations warning of PFS

National media reports worldwide

Sources

Patient Services

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Read the latest research

2021 PFS Foundation Annual Address

Aug. 4, 2021 Dear Friends: For several years now, our patient manager, Philip Roberts, has been telling me he feels like Radar O’Reilly on M*A*S*H. Fans of the dark Korean War comedy will recall that often after endless hours of stitching up battlefield casualties—and having just flopped onto their cots—the doctors would be interrupted by […]

Gene-Expression Study in the Penile Skin Tissue of PFS Patients Finds Significant Differences in the Expression of 3,764 Genes

July 14, 2021 Dear Friends: The first study to consider and demonstrate gene expression differences as a potential etiology of the sexual dysfunction experienced by PFS patients has been published by a research team at Baylor College of Medicine (BCM). In all, the PFS patients had 1,446 significantly over-expressed (upregulated) and 2,318 significantly under-expressed (downregulated) […]

Unsealed Documents from Propecia Litigation Now Housed on PFS Foundation Website

June 29, 2021 Dear Friends: The PFS Foundation has launched a new section of its website to house documents from the US Propecia litigation unsealed by court order earlier this year. Part A of our Propecia Litigation Library (Paper Trail), contains 479 pages of such documents, along with 125 pages of related content, including Merck’s […]

In Addition to Blocking 5α-R, Finasteride Inhibits Adrenaline Production, Possibly Inducing Sexual and Psychological Side Effects, New Research Suggests

April 13, 2021 Dear Friends: Phase V of the PFS Foundation-sponsored research at the University of Milano (UniMi) has found that finasteride, a 5-alpha reductase (5α-R) inhibitor, also inhibits phenylethanolamine N-methyltransferase (PNMT), an enzyme found primarily in the adrenal gland, which in turn may play a role in producing some of the condition’s most common […]

Doctors & Researchers Speaking Out

Men under the age of 40 who use finasteride for alopecia are at risk for suicide if they develop persistent sexual adverse effects and insomnia.

An important pattern of symptoms was common among all cases who committed suicide in the setting of finasteride use: insomnia and persistent sexual dysfunction after medication discontinuation. Insomnia and fatigue/tiredness were some of the most debilitating symptoms… Men under 40 years of age who use finasteride for alopecia are at risk of suicide if they develop persistent sexual adverse effects and insomnia.

—Finasteride and Suicide: A Postmarketing Case Series: Dermatology, January 14, 2020

Michael S. Irwig, MD, Attending Endocrinologist
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center

Two subjects—eight percent—committed suicide during or after the study.

While the sexual side effects of 5ARIs are well known, there may be persistent genitourinary, physical, psycho-cognitive, anti-androgenic and penile vascular changes after 5ARI discontinuation. Use of 5ARIs for treatment of AGA may lead to persistent sexual, genitourinary, physical, psycho-cognitive, and anti-androgenic sequelae even after cessation of 5ARI therapy… Two subjects (8%) committed suicide during or after the study.

—Penile vascular abnormalities in young men with persistent side effects after finasteride use for the treatment of androgenic alopecia: Translational Andrology and Urology, April 2020

Mohit Khera, MD, Director, Laboratory for Andrology Research
Baylor College of Medicine

Health care professionals should…conduct a full evaluation and a…risk-benefit assessment for patients before each prescription of finasteride.

As prescribers, our primary duty is to do no harm. Health care professionals should keep themselves abreast of these potential signals and, accordingly, conduct a full evaluation and a detailed, personalized risk-benefit assessment for patients before each prescription of finasteride.

—Ongoing Concerns Regarding Finasteride for the Treatment of Male-Pattern Androgenetic Alopecia: JAMA Dermatology, November 2020

Roger S. Ho, MD, Associate Professor of Dermatology
NYU Langone Health

This drug for young men must be taken off the market.

As of 2018, 15,000 cases of adverse reactions to finasteride were reported to the WHO—which is a huge number to begin with. And the interesting thing is that the average age of this group was 32 to 34 years old… This drug for young men must be taken off the market.

—Documentary on German network NDR titled Side Effects of Finasteride Are Underestimated: January 25, 2021

Hartmut Porst, MD
Founder, European Institute for Sexual Health

Mother of Patient

He was a happy, easy going, kind and caring teenager and Propecia has made him mentally disabled.

My son, 31, had a mild form of BDD and was worried about his hair thinning and took Propecia in 2013. He was taking it for 4 years during which his personality changed beyond recognition and I suspect he developed PFS. He experienced severe side effects: insomnia, loss of libido, obsessive thoughts, anxiety, depression and suicidal ideation. These deteriorated since he stopped taking Propecia in 2017. He was no longer able to go to work, lost the ability to sleep well, was unable to care for his 2 daughters and is feeling increasingly suicidal. He had to go to the emergency department twice this year and now is in a mental hospital in New York. Vulnerable young people should not be prescribed Propecia so easily and drug producers should provide a clear warning about such dangerous side effects. I believe Propecia ruined his health, career and life. He was a happy, easy going, kind and caring teenager and Propecia has made him mentally disabled. I’m very upset and do not know what to do.

GL, 62, Oxford, England: Aug. 3, 2018

Condition update: September 2020

No improvement

Mother of Patient

He’d been using topical medications for 5 years and decided to try Finesteride. That was the beginning of a nightmare.

My son was a healthy, smart ambitious 28-year-old man who was going back to school at Suffolk University with a 4.0. He also worked and was in fantastic health, climbing mt Washington in 4 hours for fun. He was, however, battling losing his hair. He’d been using topical medications for 5 years and decided to try Finesteride. That was the beginning of a nightmare. His sister was getting married Alugust 18th. 4 days before the wedding it started…muscle spasms, nonstop and severe anxiety. He had only been on it for 3 months. He immediately stopped taking it but it has continued for the last 5 months. Now though, he is in pain. He has been seeing a neurologist, and is convinced he must have ALS, although so far the tests do not point to that. He started seeing a therapist also hoping it was stress. But the pain and twitching and insomnia are real. He does not currently have any erectile issues thankfully but the physical and mental stress he experiences is horrible. He continues to search foir answers but i am convinced it is from the Finesteride.

LM, Lowell, MA: Jan. 6, 2019

Condition update: August 2020

Slightly worse

PFS Patient (male)

I am living now for seven years with my parents in their tiny apartment and do not know what to do.

I am 35 years old and have this Syndrome since I have been 24 years old. My Life was smashed and destroyed after I started with Finasteride. I can’t stop thinking about this one moment I decided to go to this special Doctor who treats hairloss. I was 24 years young and I had full beautiful hair. This Doctor made some tests and scared the shit out of me my prognosing a full bald me in a few years. I trusted him and took the pills he gave me. Safe pills he said. No side-effects. Soon after I started the pills my life made a u-turn. I was finishing university and had already found a new job in a new city. That’s when I start to enter hell. I lost my mind and had the most disgusting mental health issues. I had to go to the hospital and started with suicide thoughts. It was an absolute nightmare! Fast Forward. I am living now for seven years with my parents in their tiny apartment and do not know what to do. I feel a bit better because I take a lot of different medications but I can not go outside or even read a book because I feel sedated. I really do not know what to do with my life.

HH, 35, Stuttgart, Germany: Feb. 3, 2019

Condition update: September 2020

No improvement