Metacare Launches 0.2mg Dutasteride Hair Loss Treatment

Metacare is making a full-fledged entry into the hair loss treatment market by launching a low-dose dutasteride product. The company also plans to leverage the medical and data business capabilities of its parent company, Metalabs, with the goal of establishing a comprehensive business ecosystem that covers the entire hair loss treatment process.

On September 10, Metacare announced that it has signed a contract with Sears Pharmaceutical for the commissioned production of a 0.2mg dutasteride hair loss treatment product. The company is preparing for production and distribution, with plans to begin sales soon.

This product is a 0.2mg low-dose prescription medication containing dutasteride, used for the treatment of male pattern hair loss. While the domestic dutasteride market is currently centered around 0.5mg products, Metacare is targeting the demand for low-dose options based on patient conditions and specific treatment objectives.

Metacare highlighted as a differentiator that the 0.2mg product can be taken in a single capsule without the need for separate dose adjustments. By ensuring price competitiveness—given that hair loss treatments are often used long-term—the company aims to enhance both convenience and cost-effectiveness for patients.

With this launch, Metacare intends to nurture hair loss treatments as a new growth pillar and to expand its related pharmaceutical portfolio based on market response and needs in clinical practice.

The company will also strengthen business ties with its parent company, Metalabs. By combining the GPO (Group Purchasing Organization) business of JK Medi—recently acquired by Metacare—with its hair loss pharmaceutical business, Metacare aims to improve its capacity for supplying medicines and medical consumables.

In addition, Metacare plans to integrate over 200,000 pieces of customer data accumulated through Metalabs’ medical institution management consulting capabilities and its specialized CRM solution for hair loss. This will help the company build a ‘full-stack hair loss healthcare ecosystem’ ranging from the supply of pharmaceuticals and medical consumables, to hair loss treatment, hair transplantation, post-procedure management, and data utilization.

The domestic market for hair loss treatments continues to grow. According to IQVIA data cited by Metacare, the Korean male pattern hair loss prescription drug market increased from approximately 154.2 billion won in 2020 to about 188.0 billion won in 2024. The market for dutasteride generics grew by around 85% over the same period, from about 26.7 billion won to 49.4 billion won.

A representative from Metacare stated, “With changing perceptions around hair loss treatment, the prescription drug market is continuing to grow steadily—especially with rapidly increasing demand for dutasteride-based products. Starting with the release of our new 0.2mg product, we plan to build a meaningful business foundation in the hair loss treatment market and to gradually expand our pharmaceutical portfolio.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.