Dealing with Chemotherapy Hair Loss
- Hair loss is a very common side effect of chemotherapy for ovarian cancer
- The eyebrows and eyelashes as well as the scalp hair may disappear
- Side effects of the drug paclitaxel are usually the cause of hair loss in ovarian cancer patients
- Cooling caps may help slow the loss
- Some women rely on wigs, scarves, and caps to cover thinning or absent hair, others prefer to go bareheaded
- In most cases, hair grows back after chemotherapy is stopped
Dr. Wethington explains that the hair loss from chemotherapy isn't just on the head, "which is what most people immediately think of." Women on an ovarian cancer chemotherapy regimen may also be distressed by the loss of their eyebrows and eyelashes. (Hair loss on the rest of the body isn't usually as noticeable, or as upsetting.)
Read MoreThere is no miracle drug to prevent hair loss during chemotherapy. But there are some things that do seem to slow it. One of the most common ways for people to try to slow their chemo hair loss is by a process called scalp hypothermia: using ice packs or wearing special cooling caps or cold caps before, during, and after each chemotherapy treatment. “Essentially these caps slow the blood flow to those direct areas to decrease the extent of hair loss,” says Dr. Wethington. By constricting the blood flow to the scalp, the caps limit the amount of circulating chemotherapy that reaches the hair follicles, protecting them from some of the chemo’s damaging effects.
“There are multiple companies that can provide these caps, and they all have their own data as to how efficacious they are,” says Dr. Wethington. In my experience they do help. They don’t eliminate hair thinning, but they seem to help.” Some versions of these caps are even high-tech, connecting to a computer that controls the flow of cooled liquid through the cap.
Dr. Wethington says some people also use the caps on the hands and feet to ease neuropathy–nerve damage causing feelings of numbness, tingling, or pain.
Wear Temporary Cover-Ups While Waiting
Since hair loss can’t be prevented, some women decide to cover their heads and wait until their hair grows back after treatment. “Some women buy hats, scarves. There’s a variety of different wraps that people do,” says Dr. Wethington. “There’s a whole different host of approaches. Some women buy wigs, try out some new hairstyles.”
Own the Look
And then there are women who go out proudly bald into the world while they are in treatment. “Some women grab a razor, shave their head, and they look great actually,” says Dr. Wethington. “Their approach is to totally own the look.”
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