Degarelix

How it works

Shuts the pituitary's GnRH receptor, the sex-hormone switch, so testosterone falls in days with no first surge. For prostate cancer.

What it's made of

10 amino acids, seven of them unnatural and five in D form. It comes from GnRH, redesigned to block its receptor and to form a depot under the skin that lasts a month.

What it's for

Prescribed for

Advanced prostate cancer.