This article discusses ‘the chance’ of experiencing a side effect with Dutasteride and provides links to pages where you can view many side effects that have been experienced by a minority of test subjects who used the drug for months and years.
I get a lot of emails asking me about any side effects I or my twin may have experienced when using Dutasteride. Also questions relating to other side effects which the emailer may experience if they started taking the drug.
Firstly I am not a doctor, nor a specialist on Dutasteride or using any sort of drug, I am not qualified nor do I feel comfortable in answering any one’s questions. All I ever do is point to other information on the internet from credible sites and sources. I draw conclusions from data but my conclusions are never set in stone and should never be treated as an absolute answer, nor should your’s really! Even when I am using other sources and not my own experiences. This site and all it’s information is simply here to aid you in making a choice on whether to use anything to tackle your MPHL. I don’t advise for or against taking Dutasteride, that is your choice, not mine to make!
What I can say is that neither me or my twin brother have noticed any side effects from using the drug to this date. That doesn’t mean you will not experience any side effects nor does it mean we won’t experience any in the future.
There have been some tests into the use of Dutasteride to fight against prostate cancer and to use against male pattern hair loss. Here are some links to such tests:
- Comparison of Clinical Trials With Finasteride and Dutasteride
- A Study To Assess The Efficacy And Safety Of Dutasteride 0.5mg Once Daily
The issue I have with any drugs tests over a period of time is unless they evaluate hundreds of thousands of users if not millions, I think there is always going to be a question hanging over any definate conclusions that can be drawn. Tests take lots of time, patience and many people for solid conclusions to be drawn, especially towards negative side effects – as this seems to be some people’s concern more than the positive ones at first.
A test done over six months, a year or even two years in my opinion can only bring conclusions of a reasonable nature but not exact. There will always be so many variables that cannot humanly be accounted for in tests, especially drug tests and to put an absolute marker on any stat you take from a drug test would be a fools game to play. We can only say a result points towards a greater chance of something happening but to what degree you conclude that to be is also questionable in it’s own right.
So when it comes to using data given by any clinical trial on any drug, do not assume that what is printed is absolute. Instead the sad truth is, the only way to know for sure when it comes to taking a drug, like Dutasteride which in my opinion has not had enough testing done on it to conclude how many people will likely suffer any of the proposed side effects, is to try it yourself.
Adverse affect on similar drug in UK user
Here is an example of a person who presumed Propecia (Finasteride) was safe for himself to take. This is the old story of a person who thought in an absolute way and not in a grey one. Even after coming off Propecia he still experienced the same impotent side effects from using the drug.
Ironically even though part of the BBC site reports on how this drug ruined a man’s sexual drive and rendered him completely impotent another part of the site mentions Fintasteride as an option for hair loss. Even though they have a disclaimer up saying the page is there for information purposes only, they do still choose to mention the drug under the hair loss section and at the same time write a news article which sheds doubt on it’s labelling.
Merck, the drugs manufacturer do actually report a 1.8% chance of an adverse sexual side effect. You can find their data here. As I am writing this article the Propecia site itself is actually down. Reports are that Merck have taken the site down due to legal issues and disputes over their labelling and reporting over the likelihood of experiencing side effects of Propecia and to what degree. I only found out about this as I was doing research half way through writing the article but it just goes to show, data does not spell absolution. Legal disputes are reported as being filed due to the severity of side effects experienced by some users as much as the frequency.
The point of this story is again is just because the chance of a reaction is small does not mean that it won’t happen to you and there is no way of knowing to what degree it will affect you if it does happen, until you try a drug out. The risk is your choice to take, even if it is a small one.
My twin brother and I chose to take this risk, you could argue, we like many men who are using Dutasteride off label are test subjects our selves, even after over two years of use for me and over seven years for my twin brother. Whether you decide to go ahead and try it is up to you.
Before any reader decides to draw conclusions from any data provided for a drug or anything else that is important in your life I would advise you read a good book I completed the other day on data:
This book will help teach you that data and the way conclusions are drawn do not always tell you the overall picture and are not absolute. Although the book has some short comings it’s main aim is to change your perspective on seeing things to be black and white and instead start looking through those grey tinted glasses for a reality check on everything important in life.
I do realise this post is regarding Dutasteride but I believe the concept of this book can relate to anything including the importance of tests on drugs and your assumptions on taking them. Nothing is ever a forgone conclusion with drugs.
Here are some good links to side effects on Dutasteride:
- http://www.avodart.com/avodart-side-effects-and-risks.html
- http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/medicines/100004863.html
- Web MD – Avodart Side Effects
Prostate Cancer
Some one also emailed me stating that he had heard from a doctor who said you can get prostate cancer by using dustasteride. Whether the doctor actually made this stand alone statement or whether the person misheard or misunderstood him is another matter. However we can take a short passage from netdoctor.co.uk to answer this question either way:
‘This medicine does not cause prostate cancer, but prostate cancer can be another cause of an enlarged prostate gland. For this reason, tests for prostate cancer should be carried out before you start treatment with this medicine, and at regular intervals thereafter. One test that can be carried out is a digital rectal examination (DRE), to check if the prostate gland is enlarged. The other is to measure the level of prostate specific antigen (PSA) in the blood. An increase in the PSA levels may mean that the prostate gland is enlarged. This medicine can decrease the amount of PSA in the blood by about 50 per cent after six months treatment, even in men who have prostate cancer. Your doctor will take this into account when interpreting the results of any blood tests. ‘
In conclusion, drugs can only go so far with testing without spending a life time in trials. Do not take one person’s, one test’s or a bunch of test’s results as a reflection on what will happen to you. Instead compare all the data out there before making a decision on whether to take a drug and remember, any ‘chance’ of something happening positive or negative is only that, and is not a certainty.