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Degarelix (Firmagon)

Also known as Firmagon.

Approved in the US and the EU for advanced prostate cancer. Its 12-month main trial found fast, lasting testosterone suppression with no early hormone flare.

NalPhePalSerPhePheLeuLysProAla
10 amino acids, in order. A double ring marks a mirror-image, modified or non-standard one. End caps, bridges and anything attached to the chain are not drawn. Source: PubChem.
Human evidence
Grade A

Large trials

Completed randomized trials
4+

The plus sign marks a floor: the record counts more trials than it lists.

Approved?
US and EU

Approved in the US and the EU

Sport (WADA)
Not named

Not named on WADA's list. That is not clearance.

Checked on .

How we count a trial
Short answer

As of September 2026, degarelix is an approved medicine in the US and the EU for advanced prostate cancer. Its 12-month main trial, against leuprolide, found fast and lasting testosterone suppression with no early flare. If a vial of degarelix reached you outside medical care, that trial did not test it, and you cannot tell from the outside what it holds.

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What is degarelix?

Degarelix is a lab-made peptide that directly blocks the receptor for GnRH, the brain signal that controls sex-hormone production. Ferring Pharmaceuticals developed it. The FDA approved it in December 2008 for advanced prostate cancer, based on a 12-month Phase 3 trial against leuprolide.

Does degarelix work?

The FDA reviewed the trials and approved it for advanced prostate cancer. In the main trial, testosterone fell fast and stayed down, with none of the early flare that the older agonist drugs can cause.

What we found. 4+ completed randomized trials counted on the record. 3 study rows listed below, and one of them is a review, so the number shows with a plus sign until every trial is listed.

Studies on the degarelix record: each study, what it was tested in, its status and what it shows.
12-month Phase 3 trial, degarelix against leuprolidePeoplePublished 2008Fast, lasting testosterone suppression with no early flare. It supported the FDA approval
Open-label Phase 3 trial in Korean patientsPeoplePublished 2015The record says the efficacy and safety findings held in this added regional population
Cochrane review of degarelix for advanced hormone-sensitive prostate cancerPeoplePublished 2021It pulled together the evidence comparing degarelix with other androgen deprivation approaches. The record states no result
How we count a trial

Is degarelix safe?

The record names two key concerns in people. One is reactions where the medicine is given. The other is the set of side effects that come with hormone suppression, shared across this drug class. The record lists no long-term head-to-head trial of heart outcomes against the older agonist drugs. These concerns describe Firmagon, the approved product. A vial that arrived some other way is what the next section is about.

What is in a vial sold as degarelix?

Firmagon is the product the FDA approved, and the trial published in 2008 supported that approval. This record holds no sign that degarelix is sold outside medical care. If a vial reached you some other way, it was in none of the studies above, and the checklist lists what to ask the seller.

What don't we know?

  • Whether long-term heart outcomes differ from those on the older agonist drugs. The record lists no trial of that.
  • What is in any vial that did not come from a pharmacy.

The other side

Degarelix comes with a prescription and a doctor's care. The record says it is used by men with advanced or hormone-sensitive prostate cancer who need androgen deprivation therapy. The open question on this page is one comparison the record lacks, on long-term heart outcomes.

What would change this record?

  • A long-term trial that compares heart outcomes on degarelix head to head with GnRH agonists.
  • A WADA technical note that names GnRH antagonists under class S2.2.

Change log

  • Record checked. No change logged yet.
Every change on the Table

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More questions about degarelix

Is degarelix the same as Firmagon?

Firmagon is the brand name the FDA approved for degarelix.

What is degarelix approved for?

Advanced prostate cancer, in the US and the EU. The FDA approved it in December 2008.

Is degarelix the same as leuprolide?

No. Degarelix blocks the GnRH receptor directly. Leuprolide is an agonist. The record says drugs of that kind first stimulate hormone signalling and then suppress it, and that they can cause a temporary flare.

Has degarelix been compared with leuprolide in a trial?

Yes. A 12-month Phase 3 trial, published in 2008, compared the two. It showed fast, lasting testosterone suppression with no early flare, and it supported the FDA approval.

Is degarelix banned in sport?

It is not named on WADA's list. The record gives no sport source for that. If you compete, check the current List.
Sources

Record checked on . Each source shows the date it was checked.

Other approved drugs

In the same group

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