Men who take the hair-loss medication Propecia and develop sexual side effects may be at risk for severe depression and suicidal thoughts, a new study suggests. Don't miss these Health stories We've seen the colorful stripes of tape on the backs of synchronized divers, on the stomachs of beach volleyball players, the legs of track and field stars. But what is it -- and does it really do anything? In the study, 64 percent of men who developed long-lasting sexual side effects from the drug also reported experiencing moderate or severe symptoms of depression, and nearly 40 percent reported suicidal thoughts. Low libido and erectile dysfunction have been reported in men taking Propecia, and in some, the side effects persist after the medication is stopped. It is not known how many men experience long-lasting sexual side effects from Propecia, but it is thought to be a small percentage. Doctors and Propecia users should be aware of the potential serious risks of the medication, "especially as it is being used cosmetically, to alter a normal age-related process," said study researcher Dr. Michael Irwig, an assistant professor of medicine at the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences in Washington, … Continue reading →

(CBS News) New research finds a simple modification may make a cancer drug three times more powerful without the side effects a higher dose would likely cause. All it takes is a glass of grapefruit juice. In the preliminary study published in the August issue of Clinical Cancer Research, scientists at the University of Chicago set out to analyze how certain foods would affect metabolism of the anti-cancer drug called sirolimus, which is an FDA-approved drug to prevent rejection of a kidney transplant and has been seen to help some people with cancer. The problem with sirolimus, however, is that the drug is easily metabolized and leaves the blood stream before it can show benefits. The optimal dose needed to show anti-tumor benefits also brings with it significant gastrointestinal problems. "Grapefruit juice, and drugs with a similar mechanism, can significantly increase blood levels of many drugs, but this has long been considered an overdose hazard," study director Dr. Ezra Cohen, a cancer specialist at the University of Chicago Medicine, said in a news release. "Instead, we wanted to see if grapefruit juice can be used in a controlled fashion to increase the availability and efficacy of sirolimus." The researchers enrolled … Continue reading →

Sirolimus, a drug typically used by transplant patients to prevent rejection, has been found in previous studies to have anti-cancer properties as well. While its not currently used to treat cancer, there may be a way to give those properties a boost, and make the drug a feasible option for cancer patients by adding some grapefruit juice. A new study from the University of Chicago Medicine revealed patients taking sirolimus receive more of its anti-cancer benefits if they drink a glass of grapefruit juice every day along with the drug. The drug-juice combination was so effective that patients who drank grapefruit juice obtained three times as many benefits than those who took the drug alone. This is also interesting because of grapefruits dangerous interaction with some prescription medications, namely ones that treat high blood pressure and heart conditions. Researchers had discovered sirolimus potential anti-cancer properties from previous research. Its a drug that was discovered in the 70s, Dr. Ezra Cohen, a cancer specialist at the University of Chicago Medicine and the studys lead author, told FoxNews.com. It was clearly shown to have anti-cancer effects and anti-neoplastic effects, but it hadnt been developed for cancer extensively because the patent ran out. … Continue reading →

ScienceDaily (Aug. 7, 2012) Patients in early clinical trials of new-style targeted cancer therapies appear to have a much lower risk of the most serious side-effects than with traditional chemotherapy, according to a new analysis. Researchers at The Institute of Cancer Research, London, and The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust analysed data from 36 Phase I trials run by the organisations' joint Drug Development Unit. The study, published August 7 in August's Annals of Oncology, found the overall risk to patients of suffering a life-threatening side-effect was around seven times less than for traditional cytotoxic agents*. Most new cancer drugs developed over recent years are targeted agents, which attack the specific genetic or molecular faults driving cancer growth, rather than one-size-fits-all chemotherapeutics, which kill all rapidly dividing cells. Recent studies have shown that patient response rates in Phase I trials of new-generation targeted drugs are approximately two-fold higher than for old-style drugs. But until now, the risk of side-effects to patients taking part in early stage trials of new-style drugs has been unclear. Senior author Dr Rhoda Molife, a medical oncologist and senior investigator in Phase I clinical trials in the Drug Development Unit of The Institute of Cancer Research … Continue reading →

Young men who took Propecia for hair loss and experienced its sexual side effects also had high rates of depressive symptoms, even after stopping the drug, a retrospective study found. Among a group of men who developed persistent sexual dysfunction that continued for at least three months after they stopped taking Propecia, 75 percent reported symptoms of depression compared with 10 percent of controls who never took the drug, according to Dr. Michael Irwig of George Washington University in Washington, D.C. The symptoms were moderate-to-severe in 64 percent of the former Propecia users and in none of the controls, Irwig reported online in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry. Read this story on http://www.medpagetoday.com. Propecia has been a popular treatment for male-pattern baldness, and sexual side effects identified during clinical trials appeared to resolve on withdrawal of the treatment. However, emerging evidence has shown that in some men the adverse effects persist, and the FDA recently amended the drug's labeling to reflect greater concern about these problems. Recent uncontrolled studies also have suggested a possible link between the drug, a 5-alpha-reductase inhibitor, and depression. To clarify this possibility, Irwig recruited a cohort of 61 men in whom sexual adverse effects persisted … Continue reading →