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Snippet from the article:

Researchers have found that the gene p21 appears to block the healing power still enjoyed by some creatures including amphibians but lost through evolution to all other animals. By turning off p21, the process can be miraculously switched back on.

Academics from The Wistar Institute in Philadelphia found that mice lacking the p21 gene gain the ability to regenerate lost or damaged tissue. Unlike typical mammals, which heal wounds by forming a scar, these mice begin by forming a blastema, a structure associated with rapid cell growth.

Read the full article — Humans could regrow body parts like some amphibians

Essentially, their research shows that blocking this gene will cause cells to act like stem cells, which would allow them to create new tissue rather than just heal the damaged tissue. This, of course, is incredibly early research and has not been studied in humans. We’ll see where this goes.

Snippet from the article:

A receding hairline can be a good thing, according to US scientists, who say men who go bald by 30 appear to be less likely to develop prostate cancer.

Researchers at the University of Washington School of Medicine studied 2,000 men aged between 40 and 47. They were able to link high levels of the male hormone testosterone in those who lose their hair earlier with a lower risk of tumours. The findings are published in the journal Cancer Epidemiology.

Read the full article at BBC — Baldness ‘could be good for your health’ say scientists

This article runs contrary to a report published just over 10 years ago in the Journal of the American Medical Association that pointed out that men with only vertex balding in the crown had a higher incidence of heart disease than the general population of no-balding or full-balding men.

Studies like these are interesting, but they’re really more about polling and compiling the data than trying to make a definitive connection. One group reports their data says X, and another group reports their data says Y… which means there’s a lot of room for disagreement and further study. Plus, an important note that the article does point out at the end — “The results hinge on asking men between ages 40 and 70 to remember whether their hair was thinning when they were 30, which does not provide a very reliable measurement“.

This isn’t a hair transplant related post, but it is a trip down memory lane for me. Allow me to indulge myself…

I was recently talking with a friend, and I was asked to think back on a case where I had a patient that I simply did not like. While I do get along well with all of my patients today, I thought for a few moments and remembered an experience I had in my first year in surgical practice (before my life as a hair transplant doctor). The chairman of the hospital board of trustees, a very fat, nasty, and ugly man, was an obstructionist to everything that the doctors, nurses, and local politicians wanted to improve, not only the physical facility, but he was also against changing policies that would make the hospital a more patient-friendly place. He was a political person with strong prejudices and he was despised by most of the doctors as he exercised power over them by vetoing everything they asked for. I remember wondering how I’d react if he came into the emergency room bleeding to death from some type of accident and I was be the surgeon on duty. Then one day, that wonder became reality as he was rolled into the emergency room with internal bleeding from a really bad car wreck.

There was no question how I was going to behave, how I must behave — that I would do my best to save this man’s life. This was no ordinary effort, as he had major bleeding from his liver and a ruptured spleen. By the time I got him to the operating room, his blood pressure was barely detectable. We pumped many units of blood into him, got his blood pressure up a bit, opened his abdomen, removed his spleen, and sewed up his liver. I got him out of the operating room barely alive. If he had died, his injury would have justified it… but not for me. I thought that my subconscious might have tried to work against him. I remember staying at the hospital for 2 days and nights, barely sleeping. I stayed at his bedside and did not go home for over 50 hours. Slowly, he got out of shock, remaining very sick for some days until eventually he recovered. When he came back to his chairman duties months later, he was changed. Anything I would say would become his cause célèbre, so when I endorsed various hospital agenda issues like any improvements in hospital policies, in the hospital’s physical plant, etc… he became an advocate.

This experience was unique for me. I knew if he died, I somehow might be responsible for his death. I did not give him any better care than I would give any of my patients, but my prejudices towards him made me so aware of how vital and important it was for me to be impartial.

In non-hair-loss news, here’s a snippet from the article:

Good news for coffee drinkers—new observational data presented last week at EPI|PNAM 2010, the Cardiovascular Disease Epidemiology and Prevention and Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Metabolism 2010 Conference, suggests that multiple cups of Joe are associated with a lower risk of arrhythmias.

“A lot of people think they have palpitations from coffee, and doctors commonly tell people not to drink it, but there are very few actual data, and the data that are available suggest no relationship,” said lead investigator Dr Arthur Klatsky (Kaiser Permanente Division of Research, Oakland, CA). “We went into this study thinking there would be no association, but to our surprise, there was actually an inverse relationship. It could be protective, although one observational study doesn’t prove anything yet.”

Read the full article — Coffee associated with lower risk of arrhythmias

In a significant article recently published, the benefits of coffee include a reduction of arrhythmias and other antioxidant properties. The story goes on to point out that it could be caffeine that is the key, but this is all observational data and needs to be studied further. It is interesting reading…

Thanks a lot Dr. for this helpful blog site that keep us well informed about baldness. Two weeks ago, I did a HairDx test (rxr) for finasteride response. Do you think such test is accurate enough to build upon? How much it’s acurate per cent?

There are two HairDX tests — one which shows if you carry the genes for balding, and one which suggests how sensitive you are to finasteride. The statistics on both of these are not 100%, but HairDX doesn’t provide an actual accuracy percentage that I could find. I don’t have enough experience with HairDX to know how accurate they are first hand, but I would expect they’d be as accurate as possible. There are multiple reasons why accuracy could be skewed, including data collection errors, software errors, and disease.

It’s also worth noting that their Service Agreement page does say, “HairDX is providing no guarantee that the Service measurements will be successful or provide accurate results.”

I have noticed a loss of hair and a change in texture in the last two months. I have been taking propecia for years and never had any trouble. I have been stressed and also cut my head open in a perfect vertical line in the front of the scalp. Could these be the reasons or is something else possible? There really is a difference and it is beginning to worry me. I have BDD and this is actually affecting my life. Thank you for your time.

Situations like this are why you need to see a doctor who will create a Master Plan for you. I don’t know the definitive cause of your texture change, though stress and injury could be contributing. That being said, body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) patients really need a good doctor or the imagination runs amok.

Re: Gray Hair, Changing Diameter?

Did you ever do the measurements? I looked, but couldn’t find a follow up.

No, I never did a follow-up to determine if the diameter of gray hair is thicker than non-gray. Sorry about that, but I find that I have too many projects going on to add a study into the mix. I know that’s a poor excuse, but I hope to find the time to do it at some point. I just shouldn’t have put the “few weeks” timetable on it.

Oh, and if there’s been a study regarding this that’s already been done, feel free to point me to it.

Is it true that Silibinin inhibits cytochrome P450 enzymes? I take Propecia but also make my own herbal tea from milk thistle seeds and loose horsetail, mainly for the health of my liver and to get some extra silica. If Silibinin does inhibit cytochrome P450 enzymes then is a waste of time taking propecia? Moreover, do you know of any other plants that inhibit cytochrome P450 enzymes. Any comments would be appreciated.

Sorry, this is out of my scope of expertise. The best I could do is offer you some links I found via Google (like here or here), but I’m sure you could do the same thing. I’m not familiar with silibinin or the cytochrome P450 enzymes.

One thing I can point out though is that the statement in Wikipedia about silibinin inhibiting the P450 enzymes is unsourced, meaning there is no valid reference explaining where that information came from. I assume you (or someone on a forum) saw that mentioned in Wikipedia, which prompted your initial email. Just food for thought.

Doctor — I know you don’t want to raise anybody’s hopes. But here’s a question you’ve haven’t addressed before (amazingly) — I think.

Are there any miracle stories you’ve seen? Where someone came in with a lot of miniaturization, at a young age, and somehow didn’t get much worse even without treatment?

Or someone looked in terrible shape, nearly balding, and regrew much of his hair and it was hard to see he was balding?

I honestly don’t recall anything that would really qualify as a “miracle story” using your criteria of having major hair loss, yet the hair spontaneously regrows without treatment. If someone came in with a lot of miniaturization showing at a young age (late teens to 20s), I’d probably prescribe them Propecia… so there’d be a treatment in there to prevent the progression. But if hair did spontaneously regrow (here’s your hope), chances are the patient wouldn’t come back to me for a follow-up, as he’d have no need for a doctor to look at his loss anymore.

I’ve seen plenty of miracle stories from medication though, and plenty of amazing results from hair transplantation. I guess a miracle could be labeled on a case where an extremely bald man with fine hair was able to achieve amazing results from hair transplantation and a camouflaging agent. Or like the story I mentioned a month ago, where a 79 year old friend of mine was treated with Proscar for his prostate enlargement and he regrew hair as an unexpected bonus. Or when someone with a form of alopecia areata (totalis or universalis) has even the most minor hair regrowth, that can be considered a miracle. Different people will have their own way to define a “miracle”… such as a grilled cheese with a funky toast pattern.

I am male at 24 age. My hair have started whitening since i was 20. Now i have nearly over a hundred white hair. How can i handle this. Is there any proven drug that fix this. Some people say that eating onion twice a day, hair become black. Is there any proof. Additional info i have used finasteride for five years. It stops loosing my hair. thnx for this site.

White hair is a genetic trait. You can dye it if you don’t like it, but there’s no pill for it (yet). Eating two onions a day won’t turn your hair black, but it will make your breath horrible.