Propecia (branded Finasteride)

No, Propecia is a prescription-only medication, so you can only get it if you have a prescription from a clinician. 

It is safe to continue taking Propecia over long periods of time. Taking Propecia may slightly increase your risk of erectile dysfunction, with around 1 in 100 men affected, but this, like other significant side effects will be highlighted to you.

All medications have an expiry date. Make sure you don’t use treatment after the expiry date. 

Propecia and Regaine work in a different way to treat hair loss. Propecia is reportedly up to 90% effective at halting hair loss after 5 years of taking the treatment, Regaine has been shown to be 60% effective in a 48 week study. Despite this, lots of people use the treatments in combination to treat hair loss. This gives you a good chance of slowing hair loss and promoting regrowth. 

You should be able to take Propecia alongside other medicines. However, it is important that you let us know which prescription, over-the-counter medicines and recreational drugs you are taking so that we can prescribe Propecia safely.

If you forget to take Propecia, take the next dose as soon as you remember. Do not take more than 1 tablet in 24 hours. Do not take a double dose to make up for the forgotten tablet.

We also offer the cost-effective generic treatment Finasteride in our hair loss clinic. This contains the same dose of the same active ingredient (finasteride) as branded Propecia. This means they work in the same way.

Other hair loss treatments such as minoxidil (also sold branded as Regaine) are also available from our hair loss service. You can buy Regaine on its own, or you can request it as part of a bundle with Finasteride. We also offer an over-the-counter hair loss treatment bundle which contains Sons minoxidil 5% solution, a DHT blocking shampoo and biotin capsules.

Other options include hair transplants, skin camouflage and wigs or hairpieces.