Fluoxymesterone
Pronunciation:floo-ok-see-MESS-ter-ohn
Chemical Abstracts Service Registry Number:76-43-7
Formal Names:Androfluorene, Android-F, Halotestin, Ora-Testryl, Stenox
Type:Anabolic steroid.Seepage 24
Federal Schedule Listing:Schedule III (DEA no. 4000)
USA Availability:Prescription
Pregnancy Category:X
Uses.This compound became available in the 1950s. Standard medical uses
in males include treatment for delayed puberty and underdeveloped male
organs. Experiments demonstrate that fluoxymesterone can improve the
growth, weight, and social interactions of boys having slow physical matu-
ration. Compared to some other anabolic steroids, this drug has less tendency
to promote masculine body signs (facial hair, deeper voice) in girls, and fluox-
ymesterone has been used to nurture increased height in girls. The drug can
be administered to treat female sexual dysfunction.
In women the drug is used to fight breast cancer by interfering with hor-
mones that encourage the disease. Research has found fluoxymesterone effec-
tive in reducing a cancer called myeloma and for counteracting anemia caused
by myeloma. Mixed results have occurred when using the drug for correcting
anemia associated with kidney failure. The substance has been a treatment for
osteoporosis, a condition in which bones become susceptible to easy breakage,
and for hereditary angioedema—an affliction that may involve throat swelling
that interferes with breathing.
Although anabolic steroids have potential for preventing young users from
achieving expected adult height, with fluoxymesterone that outcome does not
occur among females suffering from Turner’s syndrome (the expected adult
height in persons with this condition, however, is already short). Several stud-
ies tracking boys using the drug under close medical supervision found adult
height to be normal.
A research team studied effects on normal males who received doses three
times a day for a three-month period. Little impact could be detected, although
a few unwanted effects such as headaches occurred. Perhaps the most notable
reported change was a 30% drop in triglyceride levels; excessive triglycerides
are associated with heart attack and stroke.