Generic finasteride.....My experience over 20 years

[Will Be an Egg in 5 years]

ok, no problem, I Started finasteride when I was around 23, my hairline thinned out a bit during the 7 years on Cipla fincar, and temporary diffuse thinned on top while I was taking the Accord, but on the whole my hair is still fairly close to how it looked when I first started.

But you think it'd be worse without finasteride?

 

[20YearsOnFin]

so what's the conclusion/ advice here? Should I switch from generic (Avianta) to propecia? UK based btw.

I'm biased from my own previous experience, so in an ideal world I think everyone should just take Proscar (5mg quartered from Merck), its one of the cheapest options and offers you the added peace of mind.....The downside is it can be more inconvenient to get, because if you are buying it from a UK Pharmacy you will need a private prescription.....Other than that, its either find/stick with a generic that is able to provide results you are happy with, or if you still have lingering doubts about the generic you are on and budget permits try a 3 month stint on Propecia.

 

[20YearsOnFin]

But you think it'd be worse without finasteride?

Hi yes, without any finasteride at all, My hair would decline pretty rapidly.

 

[Manochoice]

ok, no problem, I Started finasteride when I was around 23, my hairline thinned out a bit during the 7 years on Cipla fincar, and temporary diffuse thinned on top while I was taking the Accord, but on the whole my hair is still fairly close to how it looked when I first started.

And no sides al this time?

 

[20YearsOnFin]

And no sides al this time?

Hi, no I haven't noticed any sides.

 

[TanDoc]

so what's the conclusion/ advice here? Should I switch from generic (Avianta) to propecia? UK based btw.

Western-made generics = equivalent. Literally no difference.

Indian-imported pharmaceuticals (and other such countries) = hit-and-miss, depending on who makes them and the batch. Would personally avoid when western generics for finasteride/duta are available.

 

[5minutesbeforemiracle]

I have started talking about this in another thread but have decided to move the topic here on its own.
This is purely my personal experience and I am not trying to prove anyone else is wrong or say all generics don't work.
This post is about the quality of Generic vs Generic and Generic vs Proscar worldwide (not just the US or EU). I have never taken Propecia so won't be commenting on that.

Generic 5mg finasteride UK PRICE £12-30/Year (predominantly made in India, but is also made in other locations, China, EU, SE Asia)
Proscar 5mg finasteride UK PRICE £55-60/Year (According to a US label finasteride made in Italy, Tablet assemble in Porto Rico, may have other locations)
Generic 1mg finasteride UK PRICE £120/Year (predominantly made in India, but is also made in other locations, China, EU, SE Asia)
(prices not including any prescription charge)

I have taken finasteride for the last 20 years approximately 8years of those on Proscar and 12 years on generic.

these are my results :

CIPLA FINCAR 5mg(Made In India): for all intents and purposes worked, but over a 7 year period the very front of my hairline became weaker/thinner......
ACTAVIS AIDEEM 1mg(Made In India): ineffective (Caused my hair to continually shed excessively/miniaturize)
ACCORD 1mg(Made In India): ineffective (Caused my hair to continually shed excessively/miniaturize)
PROSTACOM 5mg: ineffective(Caused my hair to continually shed excessively/miniaturize)
PROSTIDE 5mg: Worked
PROSCAR 5mg: Worked

(These results seam to be user specific as many people swear there is no difference)

In the early part of the 2000's there were only a few Generic finasteride brands(dr Reddy's, Cipla etc , since 2014 especially there now seams to be hundreds, its impossible for anyone to personally test all of them, but there are 4 questions that I have asked myself.

1)Are all of the 100-200 generics available created equally?
2)Are the generics 100% Identical to Proscar?
3)Does it matter?
and lastly....
4)If the price is approximately the same or cheaper is there anything else I own where I would rather buy an Indian made version over one that is made in the EU?

Here is the FDA's answer
Are generic drugs less effective?
No. Generic medications are just as effective as brand-name drugs. According to the FDA, drug makers must prove that generic medications can be substituted for brand-name drugs and offer the same benefits as their brand-name counterparts

Here Is a chemists answer:

5 Problems with Generics to Ponder

Generic drugs are cheap, effective, and FDA approved. So, what's the problem?

www.pharmacytimes.com

or

Why your generic drugs may not be safe and the FDA may be too lax

As drug prices soar, consumers look for cheaper generics. A recent study showed safety issues in some generics made abroad, however, suggesting that the FDA’s honor system may not be enough to ensure safety.

theconversation.com

Here is a doctors answer:

https://www.wolfhair.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Brand-Name-vs-Generic-Finasteride-Jan-Feb-2016.pdf

Here's a paper passing an generic 5mg on bioequivalence but does note its not 100% the same

http://www.thaiscience.info/journals/Article/CMMJ/10905023.pdf

My opinion:
In practice only 1 of the generics that I tried were able to match my results on Proscar, that's not to say generics don't work, but out of 100-200 generics available some of them were less effective or ineffective in my case.

As the last Proscar 5mg I brought was half the price of generic 1mg , I see no reason to swap back to generics again.

If you are on generics and they are working I'm not suggesting anyone should swap. but if you have recently swapped and felt a difference or the generics you are on are not working then this may well be the reason.

Thanks for the post. So you're using 5mg finasteride tablet cut into quarters = 1.25mg per day?
I was considering it but am concerned about the distribution of the finasteride within the tablet (eg. 25% of the tablet doesn't necessarily contain 25% of the finasteride).

 

[losingbattle88]

Interesting observation. 20 years is serious commitment, hats off for your patience. I'm also on generic 5mg finasteride (~0.6mg) for 2 years.

So far it's been okay for stabilization at every other day dosing. Recently noticed that the very front of my hairline looks thinner than it did at baseline and the temples clearly haven't stayed 100% either, basically a similar experience to yours I imagine. Therefore I've switched for every-day dosing recently and will increase it to 1.25mg soon if sides don't show. Hopefully things will improve.

Your theory could hold ground especially when backed with your personal experience. Personally I'm a huge advocate of economically friendly options as opposed to propecia/proscar, although I've never read much about my supply's source. All I can say is that it's generic and it's slowly failing at maintenance. Sucks how I'm nowhere near as deep in as you are at 20 years.

A friend of mine anecdotally commented on Propecia a while back, claiming he felt he had "better hair" while he was on it, in contrast to generic. Though he never measured it precisely so do with that as you please. As of now, roughly 3 years in, he's still receding on 2.5mg finasteride, min 5% twice a day. He recently picked up Avodart which he might switch to.

3 years later on finasteride? You mean propecia? Or he switched?

 

[20YearsOnFin]

I was considering it but am concerned about the distribution of the finasteride within the tablet (eg. 25% of the tablet doesn't necessarily contain 25% of the finasteride).

Hi, I think a lot of people have that concern, but in practice with finasteride it doesn't appear to make any difference to its effectiveness

 

[FromHairy2LarryDavid]

3 years later on finasteride? You mean propecia? Or he switched?

he was on legit propecia for a while when working abroad and casually commented he felt he had "better hair" on that.. probably placebo cause it's still just finasteride.. when he came home tho he went back to generic so it's 3 years on mainly generic.. my friend that is.. I've always been on generic.

 

[5minutesbeforemiracle]

Hi, I think a lot of people have that concern, but in practice with finasteride it doesn't appear to make any difference to its effectiveness

Thanks. Btw, your posts are very helpful.
I've been on generic finasteride for 1 year and have thinned out significantly. It didn't slow my loss at all. The generic is Finasta by a company called Sandoz, which seems to be European. I have no idea where they manufacture their finasteride though. IMO it's not worth considering whether a generic is made by a European company or an Indian company; both are liable to cut corners to save costs.