Summarised by Centrist
Some are calling it “the cure for baldness” and a potential “gamechanger.” The new topical treatment, clascoterone, is said to regrow hair by “more than 500 per cent” in six months and, crucially, comes with “NO major side-effects or sex-drive impact.”
But the reality is more measured.
Clascoterone blocks DHT at the hair follicle. DHT is the hormone that shrinks hair follicles in men prone to baldness. Unlike finasteride or dutasteride, which lower DHT throughout the body and can affect libido, this lotion works directly on the scalp.
Professor Maria Hordinsky, who led the trials, says that matters because “concerns about libido, erectile function and mood are significant barriers” for many men considering existing oral treatments.
The two trials, involving 1,465 men, were the largest ever for a topical hair-loss treatment. One showed a 539 per cent increase in hair count in a small marked area, the other 168 per cent, with “no similar benefit” in the placebo group.
But Spencer Kobren of the American Hair Loss Association warns that “the 539 per cent figure can be very misleading if taken at face value.” It “does not mean five times more hair,” he says.
It means the treatment outperformed placebo in a small measured patch.
Side effects were limited to “mild skin reactions” such as redness or itching, also seen in placebo users. Men “have to commit to taking the treatment regularly,” and stopping would “likely restart the balding process,” says Professor Desmond Tobin.
The lotion is not yet available. Cosmo plans to seek regulatory approval this spring.