Why can't we cure baldness (yet?)

[TollHouse]

Really, serious question. I notice that some of my peers are starting to thin out, and I often wonder if I'll have to some day come to terms with male-pattern baldness myself (which I have to admit would not impress me in the least).

Just what is it about baldness that is so damn tricky to cure?

[skepticalbip]

Cure???? I didn't know baldness was a disease. Is anyone working on a cure for big ears?

[Makeshift Universe]

Why search for a one-time permanent solution when you can offer a subscription-like temporary solution that is a lot more profitable? I've started to lose my hair, it's not yet that noticeable unless you examine my head carefully, but I will certainly not use any of the products on the market right now. I'd rather lose my hair than pay $30 per month in a desperate attempt to postpone it. It's not like my hair is my mojo.

[nogods4me]

We can, but The Hair Club for Men stole the formula and have it locked in a safe deposit box in Yonkers, NY.

[Thanatoast]

I shave what's left of mine off. Works for me. :thumbs:

[Makeshift Universe]

I shave what's left of mine off. Works for me. :thumbs:

http://images.rottentomatoes.com/images/movie/allposters/mmph/253911.jpg

It works for Jason Statham as well, so it'll more than likely work for me too. We're equally buff and manly *cough* ;)

[TollHouse]

Cure???? I didn't know baldness was a disease. Is anyone working on a cure for big ears?

Please don't take notice of the unintentionally loaded language I have chosen. I do not mean to offend.

But seriously, why is this proving to be such a difficult "problem" to solve?

[Pavlov's Dog]

Because it is genetic.

[Veovis]

My guess is that baldness is not life-threatening. I would like to think that the world's scientists are busy finding cures for cancer and Alzheimer's instead of baldness.

Then again, I can say this because none of the men in my family have the problem, and I likely won't either! :p

[Craig]

People are working on it though (along with many other non-life threatening medical conditions), so someone is trying to find the cure.

[skepticalbip]

Please don't take notice of the unintentionally loaded language I have chosen. I do not mean to offend.

But seriously, why is this proving to be such a difficult "problem" to solve?No offense taken.

The reason the problem is difficult to solve is that the science of genetic engineering is not developed to the point that we can. - Like trying to solve the problem of big ears.

[Thanatoast]

Like trying to solve the problem of big ears.I sympathize with those that are both balding and have big ears. At least a long, full head o' hair can hide one's satellite dishes.

Then again, there is the skullet:

http://www.hevydevy.com/livepics/2005/large/SR_worcester02.jpg

[javarush]

My guess is that baldness is not life-threatening. I would like to think that the world's scientists are busy finding cures for cancer and Alzheimer's instead of baldness.

...


Don't underestimate the ability of vanity to fan the fires for profit.

[TollHouse]

My guess is that baldness is not life-threatening. I would like to think that the world's scientists are busy finding cures for cancer and Alzheimer's instead of baldness.

That's a nice thought ... but I would imagine that "curing" baldness would make one an instant billionaire.

[MadPhatCat]

Bah. Shame on everyone who didn't realize curing baldness would be like an instant bazillion dollar industry.

We can cure baldness, we just haven't gotten there yet. They are figuring out how to clone hair follicles (the non-DHT sensitive ones from the back or sides of your head) and how to implant them and have them grow normally (as in perpendicular to your head). At first they will use the cloning process in concert with normal hair replacement (which they may already be doing now), and eventually all the hairs they stick on top of your head will be clones.

I give it 15-20 years. Tops.

Edit - Here's an article discussing the procedure I mentioned. why-a-baldness-cure-is-taking-so-long (http://www.theage.com.au/news/science/why-a-baldness-cure-is-taking-so-long/2004/05/12/1084289748952.html)

Of course, if it doesn't ultimately work, there are other angles to come at the problem.

[johno]

Really, serious question. I notice that some of my peers are starting to thin out, and I often wonder if I'll have to some day come to terms with male-pattern baldness myself (which I have to admit would not impress me in the least).

Just what is it about baldness that is so damn tricky to cure?
Castration cures it in young men. Easy, quick, pain(ful)less. You want your hair: you lose your balls.

johno

[TollHouse]

Here's an article discussing the procedure I mentioned. why-a-baldness-cure-is-taking-so-long (http://www.theage.com.au/news/science/why-a-baldness-cure-is-taking-so-long/2004/05/12/1084289748952.html)



Hey, thanks for the link!

[GenesisNemesis]

Why can't we cure baldness (yet?)

Therefore God exists!

Hehe... I had to. :angel: Wiki on baldness treatments. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baldness_treatments)

[spamandham]

Really, serious question. I notice that some of my peers are starting to thin out, and I often wonder if I'll have to some day come to terms with male-pattern baldness myself (which I have to admit would not impress me in the least).

Just what is it about baldness that is so damn tricky to cure?

If you can figure out how to cure aging, baldness will follow. I strongly encourage all young people to consider trying to figure out how to stop and reverse aging.

...before I die of old age.

[CelticChic]

:) Too bad that wouldn't help my b/f who started going bald at about 25 and shaves his head (if he didn't he'd have the hairline of my 55 year old father).

[paradigm9]

forcing cells to grow after they've stopped is somewhat risky...cancer is always a concern. you have to find something that only signals the hair follicles. you wouldnt want to stimulate melanin producing cells in the skin for example. it would be bad. actually i wonder if rogaine caused any increase in cylindromas....

specificity is the holy grail...target only cancer, target only hair follicles, target only serotonin signaling in neurons responsible for mood, target only blood vessels that feed the penis....etc. everything else is a side effect.

[MadPhatCat]

Oh, I forgot to mention earlier there are things you can do that aren't cures but could help:

Rogaine (aka Minoxidil) doesn't cure baldness, but in some people, it prevents or delays further baldness. This one is topical. (You have to keep using it or else whatever hair you prevented from losing will start to go away in the months after you stop)

Then there is Propecia as well, which you take internally but that IMHO isn't a good as it causes hormonal changes in your whole body... ie less testosterone overall... (probably have to continue to use this too to prevent loss, but I am not 100% sure)

Other than that, and hair transplants, there is *nothing* and I mean nothing, that I know of that actually has been shown to help that is on the market now. 5 bazillion sites online my claim otherwise, but they don't have data to support their claims.

[skepticalbip]

Currently, the best method of avoiding baldness is preventative rather than "curative". - - Careful selection of your parents.

I would think that there would be more important genetic considerations in parental selection but then that is just me.

[CelticChic]

To be really on top of it you need to select your grandparents! X-linked, it's your mother's father that counts.

[toth8]

Really, serious question. I notice that some of my peers are starting to thin out, and I often wonder if I'll have to some day come to terms with male-pattern baldness myself (which I have to admit would not impress me in the least).

Just what is it about baldness that is so damn tricky to cure?

Why is there a need to cure it?

Baldness is only bad for aesthetic reasons. I don't see how it constitutes ill-health per se.

[TollHouse]

Why is there a need to cure it?

Baldness is only bad for aesthetic reasons. I don't see how it constitutes ill-health per se.

I don't mean to put my questions forth in way that makes baldness sound like "a bad thing"™. See my comment above. :)

[axolotl]

Contrary to the popular legend, male pattern baldness is God's punishment for masturbation. Therefore, it cannot be cured ... ever ... never ... in a billion billion years ... (sigh) ... (sob) ...