Hair loss can be one of the most common, and most feared side effects of chemotherapy treatment for cancer. When Salt Lake City resident, Stephanie Hess, was diagnosed with stage III ovarian cancer, she already knew what to expect. She'd seen her mother, along with a few other people who were close to her, go through the rigors of cancer treatment. But that didn't mean she worried any less about losing her long brown locks.
"Because my mom had passed away from cancer, I knew what it felt like…The thought of losing your hair, that’s the ultimate indicator of being a cancer patient." she says. "I didn't want to be bald."
Why Chemotherapy Causes Hair Loss
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Hess quickly realized that she wasn't alone in her chemotherapy journey. "My cute seven-year-old son shaved his head about two weeks after I shaved my head," she says. "I had a nephew that was living in Las Vegas at the time, and he had shaved his head for me."
Her two nieces, one of whom was in her 20s and the other in her 30s, also shaved their heads. "I hadn’t asked them to. I had no idea," she recalls. "I got a text with their shaved heads and I just cried and cried because it was so freeing."
Stepping Out With a New Look
The first time Hess felt good enough to go out to dinner with her family, she was nervous about how her new look might be received. Then she spotted her niece, with her own newly shaved head. "She didn’t wear a hat or a scarf or anything. She just was completely bald," Hess said. "Walking into that restaurant with my niece who was bald… helped me not be so afraid."
While hair loss can be very difficult to deal with, many women eventually consider it an empowering part of their cancer fight. Thinking of hair loss as a temporary setback rather than a permanent problem can help some women make peace with it.
Now that Hess has come to terms with her own hair loss, she recommends that other women who are going through the same experience surround themselves with people who will care for and help them through the experience. "Find a support group," she suggests. Talking to a group of people who understand what you’re going through and can offer suggestions can help make the process much easier to bear.
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