Hair loss drug finasteride is ‘the biggest mistake of my life’

Some online sites are prescribing men a hair loss medication that has potentially risky side effects without consistent safety checks, the BBC has found.

Side effects of finasteride can include suicidal thoughts and impotence, but some major brands mail the pills without seeing or discussing with the customer.

Kyle, 26, from Wakefield, regrets buying the pills online after filling in a tick form.

He says his life was turned upside down by a decision that was too hasty.

Kyle started taking finasteride last spring after it was recommended to him by a friend who was taking it.

He said he did some research beforehand, but buying it online was simple.

“I just Googled it and found all these online pharmacies,” Kyle says.

“It’s everywhere. It’s so easily accessible.”

The prescription pills arrived at her door a week after they were ordered.

“I had no consultation with a doctor. No Zoom meeting. I didn’t need to send them any pictures or anything like that to make sure I actually had male pattern baldness.

“I started it and, yes, it was the biggest mistake of my life.”

Since taking the drug, Kyle says he has experienced sexual, mental and physical health problems – problems he never experienced before and which have persisted since he stopped taking the drug.

“Life seems gray. My emotions are like castrated,” Kyle says.

“It just took away from me, my whole personality and everything. I stopped going out with my friends, I stopped playing football and I started having all these problems.”

Finasteride is one of the most common hair loss pills, taken by tens of thousands of men in the UK. It is only available by private prescription.

It works by stopping testosterone from converting into another hormone, called dihydrotestosterone (DHT), which can stop hair growth.

Kyle took it for about six weeks, but stopped after experiencing problems, including suicidal thoughts.

In late April 2024 – just weeks after Kyle received his prescription – UK regulators took urgent action on finasteride, saying packs must contain a special safety alert card warning of the small risk of serious side effects, including suicidal thoughts and sexual dysfunction.

After being contacted by other men like Kyle via Your voice, your BBC newswe asked a male colleague to buy finasteride from three major online suppliers to see what the controls were now.

The online prescriber “Hims” mentioned the side effects.

Superdrug also offered the option to chat with a doctor, which cost extra.

Only Boots Pharmacy asked for a photo of the hair loss.

When some packages arrived, none contained the new patient alert card that drugmakers were being asked to add.

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency says manufacturers have up to a year to comply, but it could take longer.

Boots, Hims and Superdrug say finasteride online customers are asked to confirm they have read and understood the possible risks.

They say that until the alert cards are “rolled out” and packaged, users can read the lengthy patient information leaflet already included with the drug to learn about side effects.

The Royal Pharmaceutical Society says online prescribing can be very helpful for many patients, particularly if they are too embarrassed to see a doctor. But the controls must be robust.

James Davies, RPS director for England, told BBC News: “It’s really important that, whether it’s online or face-to-face, these thorough checks take place.

“This means a full medical history is taken, which helps understand the medication that may be prescribed, the side effects, risks and benefits.”

He said sharing photos of the hair loss with the prescriber and having a video call to discuss any issues could be helpful.

The British Association of Hair Restoration Surgery (BAHRS) believes patients should not get the drug simply by filling out an online form.

Greg Williams, a hair transplant surgeon and BAHRS vice president, says that while finasteride is a good treatment for many people, the small risk of serious side effects needs to be explained and closely monitored.

“Some patients have risk factors that could make finasteride a risky prescription. I’m not saying it can’t be prescribed, but patients need to be properly counseled.”

The European medicines regulator is carrying out its own safety assessment of finasteride, which could include a ban.

Nearly a year after first ordering the drug, Kyle says he deeply regrets taking finasteride.

“It’s just a little pill. You take it without really thinking about what it can do to you,” he says.

“Every day I beat myself up saying, ‘You had a perfect life, you didn’t have to risk anything for your hair.’

“It was futile on my part… but when you’re not safe, you do stupid things.

“If I had been informed of what it can do, I would never have taken it.”