Hepatic, metabolic & renal function
Liver, pancreas & metabolism
Alkahtane AA, Albasher G, Al-Sultan NK, et al. Long-term treatment with finasteride induces apoptosis and pathological changes in female mice. Hum Exp Toxicol. 2019. doi:10.1177/0960327119842195 • PubMed
da Cruz GK, Martins MIM, Antunes FTT, et al. Evaluation of the efficacy and toxicity of oral and topical pumpkin oil on the hair growth of mice. Acta Histochem. 2022 Apr 18;124(4):151894. doi:10.1016/j.acthis.2022.151894 • PubMed [Includes finasteride treatment group]
Duskova M, Hill M, Starka L. Changes of metabolic profile in men treated for androgenetic alopecia with 1 mg finasteride. Endocr Regul. 2010 Jan;44(1):3-8. doi:10.4149/endo_2010_01_3 | PubMed
Hazlehurst JM, Oprescu AI, Nikolaou N, et al. Dual-5α-reductase inhibition promotes hepatic lipid accumulation in man. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2016 Jan;101(1):103-13. doi:10.1210/jc.2015-2928 | PubMed | PMC full text
Kur P, Kolasa-Wołosiuk A, Grabowska M, et al. The postnatal offspring of finasteride-treated male rats shows hyperglycaemia, elevated hepatic glycogen storage and altered GLUT2, IR, and AR expression in the liver. Int J Mol Sci. 2021 Jan 27;22(3):1242. doi:10.3390/ijms22031242 | PubMed | PMC full text
Livingstone DE, Barat P, Di Rollo EM, et al. 5α-reductase type 1 deficiency or inhibition predisposes to insulin resistance, hepatic steatosis, and liver fibrosis in rodents. Diabetes. 2015;64(2):447-458. doi:10.2337/db14-0249 | PubMed
Martínez de Guzmán M, Martínez-Crespo JJ. Hepatitis por finasterida [Finasteride-induced hepatitis]. Farm Hosp. 2006 Nov-Dec;30(6):385. Spanish. doi:10.1016/s1130-6343(06)74011-9 | PubMed
Nasiri M, Nikolaou N, Parajes S, et al. 5α-reductase type 2 regulates glucocorticoid action and metabolic phenotype in human hepatocytes. Endocrinology. 2015;156(8):2863-2871. doi:10.1210/en.2015-1149 | PubMed
Rzeszotek S, Kolasa A, Pilutin A, Misiakiewicz-Has K, Sielatycka K, Wiszniewska B. The interplay between finasteride-induced androgen imbalance, endoplasmic reticulum stress, oxidative stress, and liver disorders in paternal and filial generation. Biomedicines. 2022. doi:10.3390/biomedicines10112725
Traish AM. Health risks associated with long-term finasteride and dutasteride use: It’s time to sound the alarm. World J Mens Health. 2020 Jul;38(3):323-337. doi:10.5534/wjmh.200012 | PubMed | PMC full text
Traish AM. Negative impact of testosterone deficiency and 5α-reductase inhibitors therapy on metabolic and sexual function in men. Adv Exp Med Biol. 2017;1043:473-526. doi:10.1007/978-3-319-70178-3_22 | PubMed
Traish A, Haider KS, Doros G, Haider A. Long-term dutasteride therapy in men with benign prostatic hyperplasia alters glucose and lipid profiles and increases severity of erectile dysfunction. Horm Mol Biol Clin Investig. 2017. doi:10.1515/hmbci-2017-0015 • PubMed
Xu W, Schiffer L, Qadir MMF, et al. Intracrine testosterone activation in human pancreatic β-cells stimulates insulin secretion. Diabetes. 2020 Nov;69(11):2392–2399 doi:10.2337/db20-0228 • PubMed • PMC full text
Diabetes risk
Johnstone J, Lusty A, Tohidi M, et al. The association of new-onset diabetes mellitus and medical therapy for benign prostatic hyperplasia: A population-based study. Can Urol Assoc J. 2021 Aug;15(8):240-246. doi:10.5489/cuaj.7489 | PubMed | PMC full text
Lee SS, Yang YW, Tsai TH, et al. 5-alpha-reductase inhibitors and the risk of diabetes mellitus: A nationwide population-based study. Prostate. 2016 Jan;76(1):41-7. doi:10.1002/pros.23097 | PubMed
Wei L, Lai EC, Kao-Yang YH, Walker BR, MacDonald TM, Andrew R. Incidence of type 2 diabetes mellitus in men receiving steroid 5α-reductase inhibitors: population based cohort study. BMJ. 2019 Apr 10;365:l1204. doi:10.1136/bmj.l1204 | PubMed | PMC full text
Xu W, Schiffer L, Qadir MMF, et al. Intracrine testosterone activation in human pancreatic β-cells stimulates insulin secretion. Diabetes. 2020 Nov;69(11):2392–2399 doi:10.2337/db20-0228 • PubMed • PMC full text
Kidneys & renal function
Baig MS, Kolasa-Wołosiuk A, Pilutin A, et al. Finasteride-induced inhibition of 5α-reductase type 2 could lead to kidney damage—animal, experimental study. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2019;16(10):E1726. doi:10.3390/ijerph16101726 | PubMed
Da Silva MHA, Estrada JHD, Gregório BM, Sampaio FJB, De Souza DB. Does treatment with dutasteride or finasteride has [sic] impact on renal morphology? Experimental study. Acta Cir Bras. 2021;36(7):e360703. doi:10.1590/ACB360703 | PubMed
Tian H, Zhao C, Wu H, et al. Finasteride reduces microvessel density and expression of vascular endothelial growth factor in renal tissue of diabetic rats. Am J Med Sci. 2015;349(6):516-520. doi:10.1097/MAJ.0000000000000451 | PubMed