Male Birth Control Pill to Stop Sperm Production Passes Safety Test : science

[–] xodoh74984@lemmy.world 90 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago) (2 children)

June 29, 2010
Introducing the First Male Birth Control Pill
https://www.cosmopolitan.com/lifestyle/news/a8721/male-birth-control-pill-contraception/

That's the earliest year I remember hearing about a male birth control pill. There are probably articles from years prior to 2010. Obviously this is a great advancement, but is it reasonable to expect one of these to actually come to market within the next decade?

Edit: Actually, this is discussed in an article linked to by the Scientific American article:

A joke among researchers in the field of male contraception is that a clinically approved alternative to condoms or vasectomy has been five to 10 years away for the past 40 years.

[–] I_Fart_Glitter@lemmy.world 24 points 3 days ago (5 children)

Female birth control has to be safer and have fewer side effects than pregnancy.

Male birth control has to be safer and have fewer side effects than letting women carry the burden of birth control.

There will not be a male birth control pill. We would be better off putting these resources toward improving the safety of female birth control.

[–] acosmichippo@lemmy.world 54 points 3 days ago (1 children)

more options are always good for edge cases.

some women can't take birth control pills, and the other birth control options have downsides as well.
nothing is 100% effective, so if you want to be even more sure that you won't make babies, both pertners being sterlized is extra security.
some men would like to be sterile but are hesitant to have a vasectomy done. They are generally simple but they don't always go well.
for younger single men in casual encounters, you can never be sure of the other's birth control status. I'm sure there are men who would like the option to be in control of their sperm.

[–] I_Fart_Glitter@lemmy.world 16 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

I’m not saying there shouldn’t be male hormonal birth control, it’s just that after 40 years of the same story over and over, it seems the effort should be redirected. Vasalgel has been “in development” since the 70s. It’s not getting any closer.

Meanwhile, the US still only has one size of non hormonal IUD available, and two sizes of hormonal. They don’t fit most nulliparous women comfortably. This is a very fixable problem. 50 years of R&D could have solved this.

[–] nBodyProblem@lemmy.world 20 points 2 days ago

Male birth control has to be safer and have fewer side effects than letting women carry the burden of birth control.

I mean, I don’t think this is such a high bar to pass.

Pregnancy is bad but I’d argue the consequences of 18 years of unwilling parenthood far outstrips the consequences of 9 months of pregnancy. The consequences for those 18 years impact both parties.

Furthermore, men have almost zero agency of what happens in the case of an unintended pregnancy. A man can’t say, “this would ruin my life, I am going to choose not to have the baby.”

That makes the risk quite high for a man, IMO, and the only way to take agency over that risk is male birth control.

[–] xodoh74984@lemmy.world 24 points 3 days ago (2 children)

At first read that came off as callous, but I see your point. I had that thought as well regarding improving female birth control. Where's the research into a hormone-free pill for women?

[–] I_Fart_Glitter@lemmy.world 47 points 3 days ago (1 children)

It is a bit callous. I’m old enough to have seen this pop up a dozen or so times.

Every time the depression, weight gain, acne and libido changes are deemed too severe for approval and women are sitting here like… yeah, it’s all that plus increased occurrence of stroke and heart attack for us, but ok.

[–] xodoh74984@lemmy.world 16 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

I actually interpreted it as callous to the suffering women endure at first read for some reason. But yeah, there's very much an element of, "The stakes are higher for women, so they can deal with the side effects," which is awful.

[–] ilinamorato@lemmy.world 6 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

Callous or not, it's hard to justify trials ethically for that reason. Yes, it would be better for society as a whole, even if it could potentially be worse for an individual; but is it ethically right to burn up an individual for the sake of society? And now if you'll excuse me, I have to walk away from Omelas.

Edit: Pre-empting a question: Yes, I walk. I recognize that the trolley would be quicker.

[–] oce@jlai.lu 8 points 2 days ago

Male birth control has to be safer and have fewer side effects than letting women carry the burden of birth control.

This first phase study shows no side effect.

It seems you are underestimating the value for men to not be responsible for unwanted babies and to have more control of their own contraception.

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[–] oce@jlai.lu 9 points 3 days ago (1 children)

Could it be the first one to pass this test phase?

To study the safety of YCT-529 in humans, we conducted a Phase 1a clinical trial where 16 healthy men received either placebo or escalating single doses of YCT-529 to assess its safety and tolerability. YCT-529 was well tolerated, and no adverse effects were noted. The positive results from this first clinical trial laid the groundwork for a second trial, where men receive YCT-529 for 28 days and 90 days, to study safety and changes in sperm parameters.

[–] xodoh74984@lemmy.world 14 points 3 days ago

It looks like the hormonal NES/T male contraceptive gel passed safety a while back and started phase 2 trials in 2018. It's already gearing up for phase 3 trials with investors ready to fund this final phase:
https://www.einpresswire.com/article/835140008/contraline-exercises-license-option-for-nes-t-the-first-male-contraceptive-to-reach-late-stage-development

But a hormone-free option is more appealing. I hope YCT-529 makes it to the finish line.

[–] cheese_greater@lemmy.world 25 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (4 children)

itd be awesome if this was the secret to adult male dry orgasms. i would takr that like birth control without even needing that for sex specifcially.

being able to do the deed without worrying about cleanup or pregnatizing anyone is the ultimate value

[–] WoodScientist@sh.itjust.works 3 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

I mean you could take a 6 mg injection of estradiol enanthate weekly. That would produce the effects you want. Though...it...may also have some other effects...but anything's work it for a dry climax, right? 😈 😆

/s for the dense.

[–] oce@jlai.lu 24 points 2 days ago (5 children)

I don't think this stops liquid production, it just drastically reduces the sperm count, which is a small percentage of the ejaculation.

[–] cheese_greater@lemmy.world 4 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (1 children)

I've heard there is already something that basically makes guys shoot dry blanks, search dry orgasm pill

Uber-"straight" men should have no problem with that since they dont use it for anything 🙄

[–] captain_aggravated@sh.itjust.works 8 points 2 days ago

I don't know, I find it kind of fun to make a bit of a mess. Wouldn't mind if it was a biologically inert mess.

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[–] surewhynotlem@lemmy.world 9 points 2 days ago

Think of the money we'll save in shoe boxes!

[–] damnedfurry@lemmy.world 4 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Zero pregnacerating.

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[–] blarghly@lemmy.world 24 points 3 days ago (1 children)

Imma just wait until they let me inject a boba ball into my nutsack.

Reversable, safe, effective, no hormonal effects. Why would I fuck with a pill?

[–] oce@jlai.lu 4 points 2 days ago

Because this seems more invasive and according to the article, it was not yet peer reviewed.
Every solution will have a different balance of risks and benefits, more choice is good.

[–] damnedfurry@lemmy.world 10 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (2 children)

In the first clinical trial of its kind, a nonhormonal oral contraceptive that reversibly stops sperm production has just been deemed safe for human use....The trial did not assess the pill’s efficacy in reducing sperm

Uh, lol...I have to admit, I'm not really going to start caring about whether it's safe until I know that it actually does what it's trying to do.

How can you even honestly say it's a "contraceptive that reversibly stops sperm production" without qualification, if you haven't even determined it fucking works, yet?

[–] oce@jlai.lu 28 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (2 children)

This how medical studies work, because of ethics. First they prove it works on animals, which they did with great success. But before testing it works on humans, they must first confirm it is not dangerous, before they can ethically test for actual efficacy on a larger cohort.

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[–] Cort@lemmy.world 4 points 2 days ago

They know it works, but not how well it works

[–] ToadOfHypnosis@lemmy.world 7 points 2 days ago

If it’s affective with low side effects, great! Vasectomies aren’t without consequence. VPS sucks and the best fix for it if it’s chronic is spermatic cord denervation which is costly and unpleasant surgery.

[–] HeyJoe@lemmy.world 9 points 3 days ago (2 children)

I feel like i could never trust this even if i was on it.

[–] oce@jlai.lu 19 points 3 days ago (1 children)

Would you trust it less than the female birth control pills?

[–] blarghly@lemmy.world 16 points 3 days ago (6 children)

No. But I also dont trust female birth control pills. I'm vaguely aware of the side effects and hormonal shifts, and I don't think I want that in my life.

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[–] iAmTheTot@sh.itjust.works 10 points 3 days ago (9 children)

Good! You shouldn't. If you're trying to not have children, you should be on birth control, or partner should be in birth control, and you should use condoms.

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