After a week which saw two genuinely new avenues of research open up for hair loss researchers we look at yet another possibly promising development…
New Hope
The story we covered earlier in the week around the team from the University of Manchester, they had discovered a wonderful side effect of the treatment for osteoporosis they had been studying, it seems to work at the molecular level to block a powerful brake on hair growth. A long way from a product but always exciting to read about something genuinely new. Within a couple of days we were reading about another team on the other side of the world, in Japan to be precise, who have made some ground breaking discoveries around our gut bacteria and the influence that might have on healthy hair growth… exciting because we have seen other stories of remarkably beneficial discoveries involving gut bacteria which seems to play a far more central role on our broader well-being than previously believed.
Three In A Week
In an unprecedented flurry of original news stories around hair loss cures we nearly fell off our chairs when we found a third in less than a week. While this one is possibly not on the same level of research as the two earlier examples we liked it because it targeted women in particular. An article in the International Journal of Dermatology described a trial on 100 sufferers of female pattern baldness using 0.25mg of minoxidil, the FDA approved hair loss medication, and 25mg of spironolactone, a medication used as a treatment for fluid retention in people with congestive heart problems or cirrhosis of the liver and to prevent low potassium levels. Both minoxidil, the only FDA approved hair loss treatment for women, and spironolactone have separately shown that they can slow down or stop hair loss in women, and even regrow hair in some cases, the study was conducted to see whether together they could provide greater benefits.
Results
Dr Rod Sinclair, the study author told Healthline (see their article here) “The combination of spironactolone together with minoxidil was tolerated well by almost all women, arrested hair loss and actually regrew hair in most women.” Phase II trials have already begun with Dr Rodman predicting a 6 month wait before they will be ready to go for status as a pre-IND (Investigational New Drug) meeting to map out the path for evaluation and development of this treatment so that it can be made available to women affected by hair loss in the US and worldwide.”
HIS Hair Clinic
Refreshing as it is to see some effort being spent on developing a new drug for market that is specifically aimed at women we suspect that the path to market is a lengthy one and that it would take years to get through the various hurdles. Hopefully the results consistently show enough promise to encourage the next round of investment at every stage… and onto the shelf as a much needed option for women.
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