Failing Public Health Again? Analytical Review of Depression and Suicidality From Finasteride.

Abstract

Background: Finasteride, widely prescribed for androgenetic alopecia, has long been suspected of causing severe neuropsychiatric reactions, including depression, anxiety, and suicidality, even after the drug is discontinued. This study systematically reviews evidence that supports this suspicion and analyzes the reasons for this delayed recognition.

Observations: Concerns about depression from finasteride were raised in several studies as early as 2002. Between the years 2017 and 2023, 4 independent analyses of adverse event reporting systems and 4 studies using data mining of healthcare records indicated a significant increase in the risk for depression, anxiety, and/or suicidal behavior with the use of finasteride. There has been, therefore, a two-decade delay in the realization of the incidences and the gravity of neuropsychiatric effects, allowing harm from a medicine prescribed for a cosmetic indication of hair loss.

Potential Harms and Implications: Over 20 years worldwide, hundreds of thousands may have endured depression, and hundreds may have died by suicide. According to the precautionary principle, such a risk from a cosmetic medication suggests a benefit-to-harm balance that justifies action to protect the public, and the burden of proving that the intervention is not harmful falls on manufacturers.

Causes for Delayed Risk Recognition: The long delay in recognizing the risks associated with finasteride exposure includes the manufacturer's failure to perform and publish simple pharmacovigilance studies using database analyses and regulators' failure to request such studies from the manufacturer or to perform them.

Conclusions and Relevance: Current evidence shows that finasteride use can cause depression and suicidality. A historical literature review discloses gaps between research evidence and regulatory steps. The lesson is that before approving a medication for the market, regulators should require manufacturers to commit to performing and disclosing ongoing postapproval analytical studies, and this requirement needs to be enforced.