Question on chemo hair loss

I waited until it was really coming out and then buzzed it so I could wear the wig. I lost all but a few eyebrows, all the bottom and some top lashes. That started later. I was able to fill the brows in and used eyeliner.

Hi mnsotamom74!

We wanted to point out this thread to you called Hair Hair Hair, where many here have discussed their experiences with chemo and hair loss.

Also, you may be interested to know that studies have shown that cold caps and scalp cooling systems may be able to help keep much of your hair. For more information, see the main Breastcancer.org site's section on Cold Caps and Scalp Cooling Systems.

We hope this helps!

--The Mods

mnsotamom74– I had A/C and Taxol last year. Lost all my hair, including brows, lashes, nose hairs (which caused a drippy nose during chemo), underarm, arms, legs, private area..... as posted all ready, all grew back except underarm hair.

My hair was long before chemo. I cut it really short before chemo to make it easier when it started to fall out. Started losing my hair between A/C treatment 3 and 4.

Ended chemo Aug 2017. My hair isn’t long enough yet to be able to pull it back into a ponytail. And it didn’t grow back as dense as it was before chemo. It did grow back curly, Aka chemo curl. It is still wavy now. I think as it grows longer, it’s weight pulls down the curls.

Tip- have some kind of soft beanie to wear after your hair falls out to keep you warm. It is amazing how much warmer I felt wearing a soft beanie, even in the summer ( air conditioning on a bald head— brrrr)

Hi, my hair was coming out 11 days after my first AC. Pubes drop first. I buzzed my head after #2 AC because the hair loss was insane. I lost my eyebrows and eyelashes a few weeks into my Taxol treatments. But, the head hair started to grow through Taxol. Interestingly, I never went bald my hair just stayed at that number 1 clipper length. My friend tried to old cap but with AC (there is a 16% chance of saving half your hair.) Her hair looked worse than mine, still does. She refused to shave it. But, to each their own on this journey. At least when she sends me pics of her head I get a good laugh. It’s so bad it’s good. ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

I did TC, I’m about 2 mos PFC. I cold capped, and my hair thinned a lot (I estimate 50-60%) but I didn’t lose it. Never had to wear a wig or scarf, but did have to use Boldify at the end. My hair is already filled in enough that I don’t need the Boldify anymore. Never completely lost my eyebrows or lashes. My brows are about 1/3 gone and most of that happened at the end of chemo & post. My lashes are getting longer/thicker. Body hair hasn’t come back noticeably yet, didn’t lose 100% of that either, except under my arms (which is good).

Oh yes, no perspiration and no more deodorant needed, that is true for me as well. Strange, but I like it! I am about 1 1/2 years out from Chemo now and still no pit hair and no need for deodorant either

I had really long hair, but I cut it short right before my port placement surgery. It started falling out around my second infusion. I did dose dense AC + T, so that was about two weeks after my first infusion. Even though it was short, it drove me nuts while it was falling out, so I got it buzzed off after a few days. I was completely hairless by the end of chemo

Hey MNsotamom74! I'm a MNgirl myself. I am a little over three weeks pfc after 12 weekly taxol followed by 4 cycles of every other week A/C. I used the penguin cold caps and although it was a hassle, and my hair thinned, and my pony tail feels awfully skinny, people who don't know me would only think I have fine/thin hair. I'm pretty sure I have more than 50% left and am very happy with it since I got a trim a week ago (my hair is long and the ends were looking really scraggly).

I don't know if you are in/close to the Twin Cities but there is a woman, Susan, in St. Paul who is kind of an "independent contractor" for Penguin Cold Caps. Her garage acts as a local warehouse, so you don't have to wait for shipping. She has employees who you can hire to do the capping for you, or you can pay her for a class to teach friends/family members how to cap. I paid for the class and my mom and two of my aunts did my capping for me. Susan has been doing this for 9 years since helping her sister and claims a 98% success rate of her clients keeping enough hair that they don't feel the need to wear a wig/hat/turban. She is pretty flexible as well, I talked to her on a Friday afternoon and we had class on Sunday evening and I started chemo on Monday! I have lots of additional tips, too, if you go the cold cap route.

If you decide to let it go and shave it, I recommend turtle fur hats for outside. I've used their neck gators for years for down hill skiing, turtle fur is really soft, warm and comes in tons of colors.

Additionally, I got eyebrow wigs from headcovers.com after my brows got thin and I love them. much easier for me than trying to draw them on.

Best of luck to you, you're going to do great!

Cria