Post-Finasteride Syndrome
Can the damage be reversed?
Testing a substance the body already makes. If it works, that is a treatment.
The Milano Project
Fund the research that could end PFS & PSSD
- Seven studies at the University of Milan.
- Finding out what these drugs change in the body.
- The groundwork for a treatment.
What the Milano Study is trying to prove
Post-SSRI Sexual Dysfunction
Where does the numbness start?
Looking in the brain and in the nerves. Find the source, and a treatment has a target.
Inside the Milano Project
Robb travels to Milan to meet Professor Melcangi, the lab and the PhD students who run the tests.
“We are no longer in the dark. The evidence is strong. The next step is human clinical trials.”
What the first two studies found
Both were done in rats. The next step is people.
A substance the body already makes reversed some of the damage.
Stopping finasteride inflamed the gut and a part of the brain. Allopregnanolone reversed several of those effects.
Biomolecules, 2025 · Read more
The harm appeared after stopping, not during.
Rats showed little change while on finasteride. After stopping, they became anxious and avoided anything new.
Journal of Neuroendocrinology, February 2026 · PFS Foundation
Where the project stands
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Two of seven studies published so far
Both in peer-reviewed journals, checked by independent scientists.
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Studies three and four arrive late 2026
The manuscripts are being written, for submission later this year.
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All seven studies complete by the end of 2026
The last papers follow in 2027, once every study is written up.
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Next: a treatment tested in people
The team will apply to Italy’s medicines agency for a clinical trial.
Thank you from team SIDEfxHUB
Every donation pays for work that would not otherwise happen. This community has had to fight to be believed. Now it is funding the evidence.
- UK registered charity 1203385
- Gift Aid adds 25p to every £1 (UK taxpayers)
- One-time or monthly, in £, € or $
- Payments by Stripe
Gary Shields
Legal & Compliance Director
Robb Dixon
Communications Director
Morten Skov
Digital & Awareness Director
Ryan Clark
Community Director
Further Reading
The Science Behind the Project
Background on the programme, what it is studying, and the patients pushing for answers.
PFS Research The Milano Project: A Potential Path for PFS and PSSD Read more → 
PFS Research Gut Microbiota Alterations in PFS Patients Read more → PSSD Research PFS and PSSD: similar symptoms, a possible link Read more → PFS Research Androgen receptor gene length in PFS and hair loss Read more → 
Media Stories Team Melcangi Launches the Milano Project on PFS Read more → 
Media Stories Good Morning Britain: Robb Dixon on PFS Read more → 550+ people have joined the registry.
Join them, then report your side effects.
- Put your condition on the record
- Be first to hear about studies you can join
- Then report your side effects to your regulator