Hair-growth pill hits market

Dec 2005

The first oral prescription drug approved by the health ministry to treat male-pattern hair loss went on sale Wednesday at medical institutions nationwide.

Japan's hair-growth medicine market has been declining. But companies are expecting that Banyu Pharmaceutical Co.'s Propecia will revitalize demand for external treatments as well from consumers who would try both internal and external approaches.

The product was originally developed by Banyu's parent Merck & Co. of the United States. Officially named finasteride, the drug is sold in more than 60 countries.

Banyu Vice President Dan Feldman, who heads the company's sales division, said the Japanese market for hair-growth medicine is probably the world's largest.

According to Banyu, 12.6 million Japanese men, about 30 percent of men aged 20 to 69, think they have thin hair.

Feldman notes that the percentage is substantially higher than in the United States and Europe.

According to market researcher Fuji Keizai Co., however, the nation's hair-growth medicine industry has shrunk substantially over the past five years.

In 2004, the market was worth 59.9 billion yen, about 80 percent the size in 1999, when Taisho Pharmaceutical Co. introduced the megahit remedy RiUP.

Over the five years, new products, such as Kao Corp.'s Success Flavacyte and Daiichi Pharmaceutical Co.'s Karoyan Gush, have been introduced. But many users have given up using them apparently after not seeing visible effects within a short time.

Products targeting women are also struggling.

In March, Taisho Pharmaceutical introduced the women's version, RiUP Lady.

However, a company spokesperson acknowledged that the product is having a hard time building a customer base because the market for women's products is extremely small.

There is concern that sales of external remedies could decline even more if users of existing hair loss drugs shift to Propecia.

Some industry officials, however, expect a resurgence in overall hair growth products, citing test results abroad showing that combined use of Propecia and an external drug improved hair growing effects.

The sticker price of Propecia is 250 yen per pill and is not covered by the national health insurance system.

In laboratory tests 58 percent of the subjects showed improved hair growth. However, 5 percent suffered side effects.