FRANKFURT, GERMANY 2 companies team to develop male hormonal contraceptive

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) -- Pharmaceutical companies Schering AG and Organon said they planned to develop a marketable hormone contraceptive for men, expanding the range of male birth control choices.
Trials for the product -- a long-term implant accompanied by an injection every three months -- will start next year. The goal is to have a product ready for the U.S. and European markets in five to seven years, the companies said.
"A hormonal form of fertility control for men would expand the choice of contraceptives for couples," Werner-Karl Raff, head of Schering's contraceptives division, said in a written statement.
The implant would release the hormone progestin to stop production of both sperm and the male hormone testosterone. Injections of a testosterone derivative would replace natural levels of the hormone, necessary for normal sexual functioning.
Testosterone alone also suppresses sperm production, but not for all men, researchers say, without the addition of progestin.
University and nonprofit researchers have been testing similar methods in Australia, Britain and the United States, but the two companies would be the first commercial entities with a salable product.
Schering spokeswoman Astrid Forster acknowledged that some might find the delivery method inconvenient, requiring visits to the doctor to have the implant inserted in the upper arm and to have the injections.