Strong claims made about the side effects of hair loss drug, Propecia (generic name finasteride): loss of sexual pleasure, shrinking of penis and other sexual organs, difficulty in achieving an erection, depression, breast cancer in men, affect prostate tests (PSA), and cause high-grade prostate cancer. In the FDA approval documents, finasteride was noted as inducing enough harm in the fetuses of lab animals that pregnant women and those who might become pregnant should not even “handle crushed or broken Propecia tablets when they are pregnant.” Via Alternet.org
Related articles report that an advocacy group in the UK claim there’s been a year-to-year rise of 220 percent in the number of lawsuits against Merck regarding side-effects of the use of Propecia.
The same group claimed in November 2013 to have documents showing that Merck tried (but failed) to gain FDA approval for Propecia use in teenagers. Propecia Side Effects UK says the documents, from 1999 and 2000, provide “details behind the pharmaceutical giant’s bid to hook kids on a drug that has since been reported to cause persistent side effects including erectile dysfunction, penile shrinkage, Peyronie’s disease, gynecomastia, muscle atrophy and cognitive impairment.” Posted July 11, 2014.
