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.

Adverse drug reaction reports worldwide

PFS research studies published

Known suicides worldwide

Doctors & researchers speaking out

Nations warning of PFS

National media reports worldwide

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Read the latest research

‘Underlying Neurobiological Abnormalities’ Exist in Finasteride Users with Persistent Sexual Dysfunction, Suggests Clinical Study

SOMERSET, N.J., Sept. 29, 2016 – Men who experience persistent sexual dysfunction after discontinuing finasteride have “neurobiological abnormalities,” suggests a new study published in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism. Among those abnormalities is neural circuitry that overlaps with functional abnormalities identified in men suffering from “major depression.” Titled Characteristics of Men Who Report […]

Support Program Connects PFS Patients Worldwide

SOMERSET, N.J., Sept. 21, 2016 – The Post-Finasteride Syndrome Foundation has launched a program to connect PFS patients with one another for mutual support. Any PFS patient or family member of a PFS patient who would like to participate should download the PFS Patient Support form, complete it and email it back to social@pfsfoundation.org. Due […]

2016 PFS Foundation Annual Address

Aug. 4, 2016 Dear Friends: I began last year’s annual address by letting you know how encouraged I was that the National Institutes of Health had not only added PFS to its Genetic and Rare Diseases Information Center but linked to our website. Now I’m equally encouraged to note a similar milestone, achieved exactly one […]

Two European Documentaries a Milestone in PFS Awareness

SOMERSET, N.J., July 14, 2016 – A pair of European documentaries focusing on post-finasteride syndrome mark the first time the condition has been the subject of extended TV coverage on any continent. The first documentary, titled “Pills in Search of an Illness,” debuted April 19 on the Spanish public TV network TV3 in Barcelona. Reported […]

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 the age of 40 who use finasteride for alopecia are at risk for 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

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

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

FDA is concerned that use of finasteride by pediatric patients may pose long-term safety risks.

Finasteride inhibits Type II 5(alpha)-reductase, which metabolizes testosterone to the potent androgen 5(alpha)-dihydrotestosterone. FDA is concerned that use of finasteride by pediatric patients may pose long-term safety risks regarding growth, development and sexual function.

—FDA response to Merck & Co.’s citizen petition requesting that finasteride be added to the List of Approved Drugs for Which Additional Pediatric Information May Produce Health Benefits in the Pediatric Population: May 2000

Janet Woodcock, MD, Director of the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research
US Food and Drug Administration