Scientists Have Found a Drug That Could Make a “Real Difference” To People Who Suffer With Hair Loss

A drug used for brittle bone disease may prove to be the cure for male pattern baldness.

The drug in question, WAY-316606, was created to treat osteoporosis, but has also shown side effects including excess hair growth.

In fact scientists found that It causes hair to grow much longer than it normally would.

During experiments, it had a massive effect on hair follicles on men with genetic hair loss, reaching two millimetres of growth in less than a week.

Currently, there are two drugs designed to treat baldness, though both have limited success.

The only other option is a hair transplant which is extremely expensive.

Nearly half of Irish men under 30 suffer from hair loss. (Cheers Mother Nature.)

The results were published yesterday in the open access journal PLOS Biology by the University of Manchester

The drug works by targeting a protein that acts as a restraint on hair growth and plays a key role in hair loss. It is hoped that it could also be used to treat women with alopecia.

Lead scientist Dr Nathan Hawkshaw, from the University of Manchester, said: "The fact this new agent, which had never even been considered in a hair loss context...it could one day make a real difference to people who suffer from hair loss."

He added: "..a clinical trial is required next to tell us whether this drug... is effective and safe in hair loss patients."

Could be very interesting...