Serum androgens: associations with prostate cancer risk and hair patterning.

Cancer of the prostate is the leading cancer among American men, yet few risk factors have been established. Hair growth and development are influenced by androgens, and it has long been suspected that prostate cancer also is responsive to these hormones. A blinded, case-control study was undertaken to determine if hair patterning is associated with risk of prostate cancer, as well as specific hormonal profiles. The study accrued 315 male subjects who were stratified with regard to age, race, and case-control status (159 prostate cancer cases/156 controls). Hair-patterning classification and serum levels of total and free testosterone (T), sex hormone binding globulin, and dihydrotestosterone (DHT) were performed. Data indicate that hair patterning did not differ between prostate cancer cases and controls; however, significant hormonal differences were detected between the two groups. Free T was greater among cases than in controls (16.4 +/- 6.1 vs. 14.9 +/- 4.8 pg/ml, P = 0.02). Conversely, DHT-related ratios were greater among controls (P = 0.03 for DHT/T and P = 0.01 for DHT/free T). Several strong associations also were found between hormone levels and hair patterning. Men with vertex and frontal baldness had higher levels of free T (16.5 +/- 5.5 and 16.2 +/- 8.0 pg/ml, respectively) when compared to men with either little or no hair loss (14.8 +/- 4.7 pg/ml) (P = 0.01). Data suggest that increased levels of free T may be a risk factor for prostatic carcinoma. In addition, although no differences in hair patterning were detected between cases and controls within this older population, further research (i.e., prospective trials or case-control studies among younger men) may be necessary to determine if hair patterning serves as a viable biomarker for this disease, especially given the strong association between free T levels and baldness.

Longevity and gray hair, baldness, facial wrinkles, and arcus senilis in 13,000 men and women: the Copenhagen City Heart Study.

BACKGROUND: We have previously reported that men who look older than their contemporaries have a significantly higher risk for myocardial infarction. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether persons with pronounced aging signs such as graying of hair, baldness, or facial wrinkles are prone to a shorter life span compared to their contemporaries. METHODS: In the Copenhagen City Heart Study comprising a random sample of 20,000 men and women, we also recorded, in addition to cardiovascular risk factors, data on signs of aging: extent of gray hair, baldness, facial wrinkles, and arcus senilis (corneal arcus). During 16 years of follow-up, 3,939 persons (1,656 women and 2,283 men) had died. The Cox regression model for proportional hazards, which included age as an explanatory variable, was used for descriptive analysis of the correlation between these aging signs and all-cause mortality. RESULTS: We found no correlation between the mortality and the extent of graying of the hair, or baldness or facial wrinkles in either of the sexes, irrespective of age. A single exception was observed in a small subgroup of men with no gray hair. They had a slightly, but significantly, lower mortality than the rest [relative risk (RR) = .81, 95% confidence interval (CI) .67-.98; p < .05]. The presence of arcus senilis was significantly correlated with a shorter life span in women (RR = 1.25, 95% CI 1.08-1.46; p < .01). For men the same tendency was found, but the correlation was not statistically significant. CONCLUSION: We conclude that the degrees of graying of the hair, baldness, and facial wrinkles are not predictive of a shorter life span in men and women in the Copenhagen City Heart Study.

New topical antiandrogenic formulations can stimulate hair growth in human bald scalp grafted onto mice.

The purpose of this study was to test the ability of topical formulations of Finasteride ( Propecia ) and flutamide to re-enlarge hair follicles in male-pattern baldness. This was evaluated by an experimental model of human scalp skin graft transplanted onto SCID mice. A comparison was made between formulations containing Finasteride ( Propecia ) and flutamide, and a vehicle formulation in terms of the mean hairs per graft, length, diameter of the shafts, and structures of the growth stages of the hair. Flutamide and Finasteride ( Propecia ) had a significantly higher effect (P<0.05) than the placebo in all the tested parameters, but flutamide demonstrated more hair per graft and longer hair shafts than Finasteride ( Propecia ) (P<0.05). The number of hairs per graft for flutamide and Finasteride ( Propecia ) groups were 1.22+/-0. 47 and 0.88+/-0.95 hairs/0.5 mm2 graft, respectively, versus 0. 35+/-0.6 hairs/graft for vehicle-treated graft. Similarly, hair lengths for flutamide and Finasteride ( Propecia ) were 5.82+/-0.50 and 4.50+/-0. 32 mm, respectively, versus 2.83+/-0.18 mm for the vehicle-treated grafts. An in vitro diffusion study of flutamide gel using hairless mouse skin demonstrated the beneficial effect of the vehicle composition in comparison with a hydroalcoholic solution or a gel containing no penetration enhancer. It is therefore suggested that this topical composition containing flutamide or Finasteride ( Propecia ) may effectively result in regression of male-pattern baldness.

The effects of N,N-diethyl-4-methyl-3-oxo-4-aza-5 alpha-androstane-17 beta-carboxamide, a 5 alpha-reductase inhibitor and antiandrogen, on the development of baldness in the stumptail macaque.

We used a primate model of male-pattern baldness to test the efficacy of a topically applied 5 alpha-reductase inhibitor and antiandrogen (4-MA) in the prevention of baldness. Six periadolescent stumptail macaques were given daily topical applications of either 4-MA in dimethylsulfoxide or dimethylsulfoxide alone for 27 months. The three control monkeys developed varying degrees of baldness, while the three 4-MA-treated monkeys retained their juvenile pattern of hair growth. The percentage of actively growing hair follicles in the frontal scalp did not change in the 4-MA-treated group [46 +/- 6 (+/- SE) vs. 48 +/- 4], while a significant decrease occurred in the control group (63 +/- 6 vs. 25 +/- 12; P less than 0.025). Skin 5 alpha-reductase activity was reduced in the scalp of the 4-MA-treated monkeys. We conclude that topical 4-MA can prevent the development of baldness in the stumptail macaque, a primate model of androgen-dependent baldness.