The decision to ban the drug on the NHS followed consultation with
doctors, pharmacists and patients.
According to officials, most respondents agreed the drug should
only be available privately.
It was estimated that Propecia could have cost the health service
between £6m and £32m annually.
Even Merck Sharp and Dohme, manufacturers of Propecia, had called
for the drug not to be made available on the NHS.
Its spokesman welcomed the Government's decision. "We do not
believe that it is appropriate for Propecia to prescribed at NHS
expense."
Health minister Lord Hunt said the decision was in line with the
Government's priorities for the NHS.
"Merck Sharp and Dohme has taken a very responsible approach to the
introduction of Propecia.
"Treatment of male pattern hair loss cannot compare with our
priorities of cancer, heart disease and mental health."
Inequality for men
But Dr Ian Banks, chairman of the Men's Health Forum, said making
the drug available on the NHS could have helped many men.
"We have to be realistic about the funds available to the NHS but
this smacks of inequality. It always seems that we are making savings
when it comes to treatment for men.
"We do not know how important baldness is when it comes to a man's
health.
" For instance, suicide rates in middle aged men is on the increase
and baldness could be the last straw for some men, if they have
already lost their job and their wife."
The Department of Health will introduce new regulations later this
year to allow GPs to write prescriptions for their NHS patients.
Propecia only works for male pattern hair loss. It does not
alleviate hair loss as a side-effect of chemotherapy for cancer
sufferers or alopecia in children.
Baldness occurs by a gradual shrinking of the follicle that
produces the hair.
The cause is not well understood, but it is associated with a
genetic predisposition and the presence of high levels of male
hormones such as dihydrotestosterone.
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