Follicum Prepares Topical For New Trial
Swedish company Follicum has announced new information regarding their clinical trial schedule and product development.
The last completed milestone we had heard from Follicum was results from their phase 2a clinical trial of FOL-005. During that trial which completed in late 2018, the peptide FOL-005 was injected into the scalps of 60 participants three times per week over the course of 3 months. An increase in hair count and an increase of follicles in the anagen (growth) phase were observed. Following that trial, Follicum announced plans to create a topical formula of their peptide which could be administered at home rather than in clinic. A trial for the new topical version was estimated to begin in late 2019.
Finally, we have an update about the trial. Follicum was recently featured in a BioStock article which outlined all of the company’s plans for its programs in hair growth and diabetes. As for the long awaited trial of topical FOL-005, Follicum says it is aiming for January 2020 to begin the trial. This is slightly later than initially expected, but, better late than never. Completing clinical trials is necessary for a new drug to become approved and available, even though some of us wish it were not so. The article also mentions Follicum has signed an agreement with pharmaceutical company Bioglan to produce the new cream-based formulation of FOL-005 to be used in the clinical trial.
CEO of Follicum, Jan Alenfall, describes the format (number of subjects, etc) of the upcoming trial for FOL-005 at the 1:26 mark in the Youtube interview below.
FOL-005 is on the short list of drug therapies which have completed a phase 2 trial for AGA. Hopefully, the administration of a topical peptide formula once daily will be produce impressive results for people living with hair loss. If Follicum can outperform the status quo – minoxidil, it would be an important achievement.
Posted in Follicum
Yup getting tired of it blah blah blah B.S. with every company. Where the hell is Ceillino / Medipost topical stem cell products that came out in July? Any updates? let’s talk about something that’s suppose to be available already.
Interesting, but not crazy about the “cream-like” application. Reminds me of Seinfeld’s George Costanza’s experiment with a stinky cream cure for baldness from China.
I changed it to cream-based haha.
If it were proven to regrow hair i’d happily rub a creamy, stinky product on my head!
Yes, the clinical trial process is sometimes tiring but necessary like the article says. I hope the peptide comes through. But I’m really looking forward to the way cosmetic.
imagine the alternative, no update. progess is progress and it’s good to have another player moving forward. everyone’s heard the stories of companies being complacent for long years. these guys seem to be moving forwards abit.
I don’t like the idea of applying a topical cream. It sounds messy.
Well, to be fair the company refers to it as “cream-like” formula, which means it could be a more liquid form. I hear ya though, we wouldn’t really enjoy rubbing a thick cream into their hair and I’m sure Follicum understands this. They’ve had a long time to develop it so hopefully they do it right.
I sure hope they’re making it so application isn’t messy. But mostly I hope it works better than the failure products already on the market.
So you guys are saying that if it was proven to regrow hair, a superior treatment but you had to rub a messy cream on your noggin one time a day you’d take a pass? Wow! All hypothetical at this point but interesting to learn what people’s tolerance levels are.
Mostly, I’m just trying to keep morale high, there’s always a concern ya know 😉 If a cream gave good results I would try to use it at night and especially on days when I’m around the house etc.
Thanks for providing continuous updates. I request to add details about age group as well means what treatment can be started at Certain age. For Hair transplant and SHT the minimum age is 25 I believe but now count of teeagers is increasing and they face real struggle at early stage of their life.
This will help to restrict them to start any treatment which can cause some serious issues at later stage of their life.
I’ve used cream based products in the past, Dr. Lee had a 12.5% minox lotion before he developed a 15% solution. When he went kaput I have used 15% lotion and 30% cream from Murray Ave RX as an alternative. No big deal to use at night as Admin suggests. More recently I’ve found some high strength minox solutions (with other goodies) that are at least as good as Murray’s creams and less costly. If it works, Yoda will dump it on his head! 🙂
Please note that I said I mostly hope it works. Applying a cream once a day is not the end of the world but I do think that even if it works we’ll all use it but we’ll all gripe about it being a hassle to apply, especially those of us like me who wear their hair LONG.
If you’re in a position to still wear your hair long, consider yourself lucky
I’m not in that position and I didn’t say I am. I’m only saying I want to be in that position again. I haven’t been in that position for a long time.
Oh ok, cheers bud. Didn’t mean anything by it by the way. Was more of a congratulatory statement. Anyways, hopefully with some luck we’ll all be able to wear hair in different styles again. God knows we’re all hoping.
Follicum is a serious company.
If the product isn’t good enough I think they might cut their losses by ending it or selling the topical peptide.
A cream is not so bad provided it only has to be applied once a day. Less of a problem if can be applied overnight. A real problem if it has also be applied in the morning.
Well, it doesnt create new follicles, I think.
If it only reinvigorates peach fuzz hair and intermediate hairs enough to make them turn back into their former large version of follicles and grow long thick hairs again than most of us would be completely cured. If it did that then the only people it wouldn’t work on would be people who have lost even their peach fuzz.
I guess it’s good news, but… until 2022 when it comes out, I think it’s too late. Follica keeps me more positive.
What do you mean with “too late”? does it means that it only works if you hace follicules alive? Can’t it regenerate new ones?
Follica has a low tax of regeneration of new follicules in their papers.
I think boths aren’t a good option for advanced alopecia, if they finally are available in market.
49 and fighting the losing battle. I don see anything coming out before I lose it all. I think I will start Rogaine to try and buy some time.
Why not Rogaine already?
Start Rogaine??? Dude you should’ve hopped on the Min/Fin bandwagon years ago. I’ve been on it for 20-30 years(now Dut), saved most of my hair and have 8 years on you (57 year old). Get on board, if you wait for the next treatment it will be too late.
Right, but you never know. I’ve been on minox for four and a half years and it hasn’t helped a bit. Started on topical fin in late July and have seen some improvement of thickness in the back but due to my genetics I don’t think anything will stop my hairline. Although, in the next few years a new wave of treatments will become available and it won’t matter anymore.
P. S. Which cloning / injection / biotech company do you have most hope in Yoda? (Tissuse, tsuji, rapunzel, stemson). Ik none of them have released any human pics yet but just wondering what your opinion is.
at the moment, Tissuse is probably most interesting because of impending trial. tsuji is always a positive question mark just depends on their next announcement.
I had an encouraging consultation with Dr. Farjo from Hairclone recently.
I will be trying out the treatment when it becomes available next year.
I’m hoping that along with a transplant will fix my hair.
We’ll see…
Whoa interesting news….anymore details to share? He is confident it’s going to be available next year?
Are you doing the banking now?
So I’m looking to get my follicles banked at some stage in the upcoming months, need to arrange a date to undergo the procedure.
Cost will be approx £2500 which includes the cost of the follice extraction + banking costs. £150 (approx) a year ongoing cost of storage.
He seemed to confidently state next year for treatment, didn’t indicate when in 2020 though.
I asked how the Hairclone approach differed from previous Intercytex technology.
He talked alot about the different method of culturing they’re using now.
Intercytex cultured in 2D whereas they now culture in 3D scaffold which helps the DP cells retain inductivity.
Also about Dr. Higgins method of establishing whether cloned cells had retained inductivity.
Most interestingly was his belief that after a number of treatments (he said 2 or 3 but it’s a guess),
The follicles that had been treated and taken on sufficient amounts of cloned DP cells would essentially be immune from minaturisation as their DP cell populations will predominantly consist of cloned DP cells from the safe zone and now genetically immune from DHT ‘attack’.
I found that rather exciting.
Costs will around the price of an average hair transplant – so £5000 upwards?
I will be asking more questions when I undergo the follicle extraction procedure.
Any suggestions for questions?
Mattt,
Sounds like you are on the ball with this which is great because so many aren’t and still go ahead. Yeah, I agree it is worth the money if this can remedy you situation. If you get the haircell treatment done it would be great if you could come back with some pics.
All the best
Sorry, hairclone. Don’t want to start another argument by bringing up haircell again ?
Mattt,
All I say is good luck if you go with this. Really hope it works. 5k plus per treatment * 3 is a lot more expensive that an average hair transplant. If you do have a HT I advise you to do your research and spend maybe a year doing it. As it is likely you are in the UK I wouldn’t go to Rooney’s. Just my opinion. Don’t rule out abroad either. Turkey maybe or Canada which is where Conte had his. Finally, I can’t emphasis how much you need to manage expectation with a HT. But good luck and hope you get what you want.
Hi Welsh,
Thanks, I hope it works too.
Based on some of the results from previous Intercytex and Aderans trials i think it has great potential.
My loss isn’t too severe yet so even successful maintainence and stablization would be a victory.
I would probs go with Farjo if I had a HT here in the UK but if not I’d go to a reputable Turkish clinic.
The prospect of permenantly repopulating susceptable follicles with cloned DP cells immune to DHT is exciting. IMO that would be a cure and worth the cost of several rounds of treatment.
Wow, asking Yoda for his opinion, I’m just old but not all knowing! 🙂 Thanks Greg, while I of course have interest in cloning, stem cells, etc. I’m not holding out hope that any of these types of treatments will materialize in the next couple years and/or be accessible to the masses. In the near term I’m more of a Follica, Saumed guy as they are in late phase clinicals, although no guarantees.Then there are the “wild cards” as admin would say, like the Way cosmetic which could be interesting.
Maybe cloning won’t become available to the masses but it may still become available. Sure, it’ll take a couple of a few years for them to gather human data and debug the procedures but after that, I think the industry should start to pick up a little, don’t you think?
This is one of the wildcards in the pipeline now, hopefully it can come out and replace minoxidil. If anything it can build on top of minoxidil results that would be nice for people who are maintaining on it now.
Agreed Greg, cloning, stem cell treatments, etc. will become available and accessible someday. I just hate to see guys pinning their hopes that it will be in the next couple years. Heck, maybe it will be and what do I know, but my inclination is that it’s a number of years down the road. In the meantime people should use all the means at their disposal to keep what they got. Hope is a good thing, blind hope not so much.
So are you saying that J. Hewitt will not start their trial this December as they have said they will?
Keep in mind that if J. Hewitt starts its’ trial in December 2019 and they have good results then that could speed up clinical trials for the other cell-based treatments
Yes, it’s my opinion JD, which doesn’t mean it’s fact.Clinical trials are far from having an effective, guaranteed, accessible treatment/cure in the next couple years. Not what I’m hoping, would be great if we do. If my opinion becomes fact, I hate to see the guys banking on these sorts of notions be disappointed, and worse, to loose precious time/ground. If you’re a “no current treatments” kinda guy then the only thing you have to loose is more hair.
I agree with Yoda, but if we get owned, It will be a really nice fail and I will return here to get mine.
Okay this is good now we need Follica news next…
Very nice! 🙂 … see this Video About the electric cap!
“Madison, WI – Technology out of UW-Madison’s Engineering Department could help to reverse baldness.”
http://fox47.com/news/local/special-report-will-new-technology-help-reverse-baldness
To the person who mentioned he/she spoke with the folks at HairClone, I was told by a HairClone participant that Follicle banking would be available in the early part of 2020. Cryopreservation of hair follicles is achievable. However, the major question is whether or not hair follicles can be cloned/multipled, injected back into the scalp, and able to grow. It is your funeral if you want to fork over the amount of quids for the extraction and banking procedure. All I can tell you is you had better pray or hope the cloning/multiplication process is achievable!
Well I had I spoke to Dr. Farjo himself who is a founder of Hairclone.
He said “banking now, treatment next year”
I’m not sure whether you’re confused about what they’re hoping to offer at this stage,
But it’s follicle ‘rebuilding’ by repopulating the DP cells in minaturised hairs.
Not out right follicle generation where hairs don’t exist.
The former does work as demonstrated by Intercytex and Aderans.
On a side note that I think is worth mentioning,
Dr. Farjo is a very distinguished HT surgeon in the UK and has been working on this approach for over 10 years.
He carried out both Intercytex trials.
He isn’t some charlatan or snake oil salesman.
If he thought this approach was destined to fail why would he flog the dead horse, so to speak.
He has invested his own money into Hairclone.
How effective it may be remains to be seen but I’m willing to take a punt at it
So, we are no having stem cell generating new follicles, and Follicum doesn’t work if you have not follicles because it cant create new ones from nothing, just try to restore the ones you already have.
Just like 1997.
Very interesting! Do you have more information about this? Also, this seems to be the same treatment as RCH from replicel?
Hello. your shares are very nice really exciting. But you know that they update every six months and disappear. the most obvious example of this is Replicel. In 2018, they would produce products, but it was almost 2020. I have been following many hair loss sites for 5 years and I am tired of reading the same sentences. Phase 1 Phase 2 Human experiment mice … I think there is no solution. although they still have not found. Dr. Including Takashi Tsuji. I just want them to be honest. in vain can you please post this message? let’s discuss this together
Honestly… I’m 37 and I think I wont see the cure for baldness, at least til I was in retirement. Well, if it happens, at least I will have time to get te cure in a more relaxed mode.
Jose, do u have hope between tissuse, organ technologies, or hairclone that something will come out soon?
I have no hope. It the same as always
This update is part of a continuum, Follicum has been steady moving their trials and sharing results. Expect them to do the same once this trial is completed. Their previous trial showed this peptide could induce hair growth when injected 3X/week.
As far as Tsuji, yes he is still on the mice phase but people have high hopes that he will be able to translate his research into humans. You may have noticed J Hewitt is the fasting to move towards human trials with an advanced cell therapy. As you mentioned, the trial which everyone is waiting for results on is Shiseido.
Yeah, as some who replied to my note I am began Rogaine today. My biggest hangup has always been the 2x daily administration as morning seems messy before work. But, I have read some with results on 1x daily, so I am trying nightly only to see what happens.
Excellent Dave, being proactive and taking control of your situation is worth something in itself. As far as messy before work in the am, have you tried the foam? It almost acts like a styling tool. I use liquid myself am/pm but I’m long past the days of rogaine 5%, using exotic minox topicals with higher concentrations. However, I have pretty thick, course hair so no problem. Are you using fin? If not, the DHT will strangle any potential growth in due time. Keep a positive attitude and be proactive, I have for over 30 years and still have a decent amount of hair left…thinning at 17 now 57!
The fin sides are not appealing to me though.
i’d be really curious to see your hair and how it looks yoda. i wonder what it could after starting thinning 30 years ago
Trust me, it’s not perfect but not balding, just thinning in the front 1/3 area with some recession. No one ever comments that my hair is thin and I’m such a smart ass that I would surely hear about it if it was apparent. I’d hate to think about where I’d be without Minox/Fin/Dut. To be clear, not thinning for 30 years, more like 40. Noticed it at 17, will be 57 in December. Started Minox (off label) in the mid 80’s and Fin (off label) in the early 90’s. I’ve always been proactive, researched and stayed on top of treatment options.
What do you recommend for someone who had sides from both fin and minoxidil?
While it’s not impossible, sides are overblown on the internet, mostly from those who never tried it or those that get sides from pretty much everything (you know the type). The data shows that sides are rare and in most cases not severe. I was on fin for around 30 years, Dut for the past 3 years. No appreciable sides, early on watery semen was about it. If you don’t inhibit DHT the minox will be pretty much useless. Age also accelerates our hairloss rate, hence why I had to jump from fin to dut and increase the concentration of Minox. I appreciate if you are hesitant, pretty much all you can do is hold out hope for a new treatment in the next few years.
@Yoda. What dut dosage do you take daily? Thanks.
The standard, 0.5 of generic Dut everyday. Studies have shown that Dut is dose dependent and up to 2.5% can be more effective. However I’m not prepared to go that route now even though it could lead to more regrowth. I actually get me Dut the good old fashioned way, an RX from my GP and then filled at Costco. She was skeptical to initially write an RX but I provided a study and let her know it was approved for hair loss in Korea and Japan.
Thanks for your reply. Was there any shedding in your case? Thanks again.