In the US, the male population did not remain indifferent to the decision of the Supreme Court set aside the ruling in Roe v. Wade and many were already running for cover. This is what follows from the findings of many andrologists in Republican states such as Arizona, where in the face of being denied a woman’s right, as well as a couple’s, they turned to surgery to undergo a vasectomy. This is a non-invasive and reliable surgical operation, in 99% of cases, after ligation, the vas deferens of the man carrying the sperm are cut. James Deitch, an Arizona urologist who performs vasectomy, says his practice saw a 21% increase in requests for vasectomy consultations around this time compared to last year. “I think people are learning more and more about vasectomy. If I had to predict, I guess more men will use them than ever before,” he explains. Wired.
However, there are limitations associated with this form of contraception, which explains why so far only 4% of the population has chosen this option as an alternative to using condoms. In fact, the intervention has a high cost of 5 to 15 thousand dollars and is not covered by insurance. In addition, although not irreversible, restoration of vascular functionality is risky and not a guaranteed outcome. Here is the age-old question about male pills, contraceptives, which could be a worthy alternative to both a vasectomy and a condom. But where are we with drug development?
So far, scientists have been working on a pill without too many negative side effects, a problem that has plagued hormonal contraceptives in women and that is still a hurdle for some people who can’t use it for health reasons. “I would say that the biggest stumbling block is the differences in the physiology of men and women,” says John Armory, a professor of medicine at the University of Washington who studies several methods of male contraception. Men produce 1000 sperm every second. Conversely, women release one egg per month. “It turned out to be much easier to suppress this process than to inhibit the production of sperm in the testicles.”
Today, there is a hormone gel developed by researchers at the National Institutes of Health and the Population Council that contains a synthetic progestin called Nestron, which blocks natural testosterone and reduces sperm count. The gel also contains replacement testosterone to help maintain normal sex drive and regulate other functions. It is not taken orally, but only acts topically, so it must be applied daily to the affected areas and absorbed through the skin. Like the tablets for women, they should be taken at the same time each day. The goal of the research team is to obtain less than 1 million sperm per milliliter of semen, as previous studies have shown that pregnancy is unlikely at this level. (The normal sperm count ranges from 15 million to over 200 million sperm per milliliter.)
The gel is in Phase 2 testing with over 400 couples currently participating. Mitchell Crainin, director of family planning at UC Davis Health, one of the trial centers, says the gel looks very promising; so far, it drastically reduces sperm count and prevents pregnancy. The men were very happy to use it. “One of the things that we see from this study is the realization of how important this is for men who are in a relationship and care about their partner. I was so impressed with how many men really want to step up in an attitude.”
For the gel study, side effects could include weight gain and mood problems: “A small percentage of men will have some sort of side effects, but we know this is true for many different female contraceptives,” Kreinin explains. . “We’re not looking for a product that’s perfect for every man, we’re looking for a product that will work very well for most people.” After passing stage 2, the gel will have to undergo a larger clinical trial, which will likely include thousands of pairs. It will also require a pharmaceutical company to manufacture and market it, as the NIH and the Population Council do not have the ability to sell the drugs. To date, funding has been a major hurdle for male contraceptives, with pharmaceutical companies not participating in their research and development in recent years. While charities and the public sector have been the main financiers of such efforts.
A problem partially solved by Rhia Ventures, a San Francisco-based reproductive health company. “In this world post-roe deeryou need to make sure there is a reliable supply of contraceptives and access to contraceptives,” CEO Erica Seth Davis told Wired, convinced of the importance that non-hormonal forms of birth control are also available to men.We are trying to make sure there are more options in the market because the responsibility for preventing pregnancy has been placed directly on the shoulders of women for so long.”.
In the face of all these efforts, one of the biggest hurdles will be getting regulatory approval for any product that passes Phase 3 research. No male contraceptive has ever come this far, so the US Food and Drug Administration. decide what level of risk is acceptable. The female birth control pill causes about one death in every 200,000 users, mostly due to blood clots that can form as a result of using the pill. There is no physical risk of pregnancy for men, so calculating the risk and benefit is more difficult, says Armory, who says this is one reason drug companies have been reluctant to meddle with male contraceptives so far. But ultimately, more contraceptive options will benefit everyone: “The market is huge, we’re talking about potentially millions of men.” We are at an epochal turning point in civil rights: “Any product that is first to market will be a social turning point.” And we can only hope that this will happen as soon as possible.
Source: Elle