Did Scientists Discover a Drug that Cures Hair Loss?

The internet has been aflutter with news that scientists discovered a “miracle pill” cure for hair loss. Several members of our hair restoration discussion forums created threads about the pill, and where they could get it, and I think some clarification is necessary:

First, and foremost, the “miracle hair loss pill” rumor comes from two recent news stories: the arthritis drug (Tofacitnib) that regrew a full head of hair in a patient with alopecia universalis, and the bone marrow drug (ruxolitnib) that cured a number of patients with alopecia areata.

Technically, these drugs reversed alopecia in a number of patients. Put another way, these two drugs “cured hair loss” for a number of individuals. Unfortunately, the situation is more complicated. Alopecia areata and alopecia universalis are auto-immune alopecias. This means they are caused by an over-reactive immune system, and not by a hormone process like we see in androgenic alopecia or male pattern hair loss. While these drugs may be a miracle for individuals suffering from auto-immune alopecia (alopecia areata, alopecia totalis, and alopecia universalis), the pills will – most likely – not work for individuals with androgenic alopecia.

In summary, scientists did discover a pill-based cure for a specific type of hair loss. However, this “cure” does not apply for those suffering from the common androgenic alopecia or male pattern hair loss.
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Blake Bloxham – formerly “Future_HT_Doc”

Editorial Assistant and Forum Co-Moderator for the Hair Transplant Network, the Hair Loss Learning

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