COMPLETE Guide For Chemotherapy Effects and It's Treatment

Why Does Chemotherapy Cause Hair Loss

Chemotherapy is an anti-cancer mode of treatment which either helps in eradicating the cancerous cells completely or slows down the process of their rapid growth. As these drugs are toxic by nature there are side effects that are associated with chemotherapy. The side effects are nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite, memory loss, fatigue, and hair loss.

Hair loss especially when undergoing chemotherapy is termed as alopecia. The cells of the hair follicle are known to grow fast as the chemotherapy drugs are known to damage the fast growing cells thus causing the rapid loss fall. This hair loss problem is not a permanent one and the hairs grow back after the completion of the treatment. There are certain drugs that cause thinning of not only the hairs on the head but even the body hair and those of the eye brows too.

This hair loss is not seen immediately as it is visible slowly after a few days of treatment and in some cases even after a few weeks. It takes about a month and half for the hairs to grow back completely. The texture of the hair and the colour may change slightly.

To prevent rapid hair loss you can always wear a cold cap while undergoing chemotherapy as this cap helps cool the scalp thus restricting the blood to circulate the hair follicle. You can always request the hospital to provide you with a cold cap, and you need to wear this cold cap at least 15minutes before you go in for chemotherapy and the cap should be kept all through the treatment and removed only after at least an hour after your treatment.

These cold caps are not very comfortable and not all patients can tolerate the feeling of this cold cap, but then if you can tolerate the coldness then you can use them. The use of this cold cap does not affect your treatment; moreover the use of cold caps does not mean that it guarantees no hair loss as some chemotherapy drugs have no effect on cold caps so you need to consult your doctor regarding the use of cold caps.

Hair loss varies from patient to patient and it also depends upon the combination of drug used for the chemotherapy treatment. You can also get a short hair cut so that the loss is not clearly visible during the initial stages of treatment. There are some ways by which you can always cope up with the hair loss problem for e.g.

Avoid using harsh chemical based shampoos on the scalp as the scalp tends to become dry and itchy during chemotherapy.

  • Use of milder or herbal hair care products also helps rapid hair loss.
  • Wait for at least six months before you get your hair premed.
  • Gently massaging of your hairs with a light moisturizer also helps.
  • Using soft bristled hair brush also prevents from irritating the scalp.
  • Use cotton pillowcases instead of the nylon as this could irritate your scalp.
  • Avoid the use of hair dryers and rollers as they can cause more damage your already brittle and damaged hairs.