CAN YOU KEEP YOUR HAIR DURING CHEMO?

(Copyright 2015 TheBigCandMe)

I'm woefully behind in blogging. Six weeks into 2015 — and this is my first post.

I'm jumping in today to talk about a topic I have absolutely no experience with: Hair loss during chemo. 

Though I didn't have chemo, I feel the need to become knowledgable about a certain aspect of it. My good friend R. was diagnosed with ovarian cancer last week. She is still reeling from the diagnosis, still recovering from the (very) invasive surgery, still bereft about the thought of losing her cascading hair. 

So I did some research on Cold Caps...

For the uninitiated, Cold Caps are specially designed, tight-fitting caps containing gel or silicon chilled to minus 22 degrees Farenheit. The caps are worn by chemotherapy patients while they are in the chair receiving their chemo infusions. The premise? The icy cold reduces blood flow to the scalp — which in turn keeps the chemo from infiltrating the hair follicles and causing hair loss. The down side? Chemo is not reaching the hair follicles, which are awfully close to the brain — and for some oncologists or hospitals, that is too close for comfort. So they are not on board with the usage of Cold Caps.

That being said, thousands of women around the world have had success, including my Chicago-based friend Maria (also one of my Rubies and a fellow breast cancer blogger). Maria used Penguin Cold Caps during her chemotherapy treatments for breast cancer several years ago, and she kept her long and lovely brown hair. 

It isn't without effort, but it is worth the effort.

Last week, after I learned of my friend R.'s cancer diagnosis, I turned to the web to comb through what studies and articles I could find about Cold Caps. Specifically, I was looking for ovarian cancer patients who had used them. What I discovered was that they are most often used by breast cancer patients. I wondered why this was. 

My friend Maria knows a couple of ovarian cancer patients who used Cold Caps successfully — turns out they received the exact same chemotherapy as she did for breast cancer. So why are Cold Caps more popular among breast cancer chemotherapy patients?

Cold caps are still considered risky and have yet to receive FDA approval here in the states. They are commonly used by cancer patients in Europe; DigniCap is one popular cold cap brand there that has recently been in talks with the FDA . 

Because some cancers carry a higher risk of metastasizing to the brain (i.e., blood-related cancers), many want chemo to reach every cancer cell that could potentially spread. Hair follicles are very close to the brain, hence some doctors and patients flat-out resisting the use of Cold Caps. Studies and clinical trials are ongoing; it's definitely something to discuss with your oncologist. All that being said, it's exciting to think you might be able to keep your hair (and thus keep your cancer private). This appeals to a vast number of people — especially my friend R. 

As I gathered various links to articles, research and support, I realized I had a treasure trove of information which I needed to share with the cancer blogging community. Maybe it will help someone have the "please help me save my hair" conversation with their oncologist or nurse. If you've tried Cold Caps and had success (or didn't!), I'd love to hear from you. Anything to get this discussion rolling.

And now on to THE INFO.

(Copyright: Latisse)

COOL FINDING: One thing of great interest that I discovered while doing this research is that Latisse, the eyelash product touted by Brooke Shields as a way to get lush lashes, can actually help cancer patients keep their eyebrows and eyelashes. That was news to me! See below.

INFO ON LATISSE TO PREVENT EYELASH AND EYEBROW LOSS:

• Dermatology Times (Latisse Shows Long-Term Success, According to Recent Study, Sept 1, 2012)
• About.com (Using Latisse for Chemotherapy-Induced Eyelash Loss, Nov 14, 2010)

(Copyright: Breast Cancer Won't Define Me)

MY FRIEND MARIA’S BLOG POSTS ABOUT HER SUCCESSFUL COLD CAP EXPERIENCE:

• My Journey Through Chemo With Hair (Sept 7, 2011)
• Penguin Cold Caps (Jan 6, 2012) 
• Tips for Using Penguin Cold Caps (Jan 17, 2012)

GENERAL INFORMATION:

• The Rapunzel Project
• The Doctors: Preventing Hair Loss During Chemotherapy with Penguin Cold Caps (YouTube Video)
• Paxman-Coolers UK: Paxman Scalp Coolers FAQs
• Penguin Cold Caps:Penguin Cold Cap FAQs 
• DigniCap.com: Because Hair Matters 
• BreastCancer.org: Cold Caps FAQs
• BreastCancer.org: Cold Cap Discussion Forum
• American Cancer Society Survivors Network Discussion Board: How to Keep Your Hair During Chemo

COLD CAPS IN THE NEWS:

• Keeping Your Hair in Chemo (NYTimes.com, March 9, 2015)
• How a Cooling Cap Could Change Breast Cancer Treatment (CBSNews.com, Oct 14, 2014) 
• ‘Cold Cap Therapy’ Helps Cancer Patients On Chemo Keep Their Hair (CBSNews Denver, Sept 23, 2014)
• Cold Caps May Prevent Hair Loss in Cancer Patients (11Alive.com Atlanta, May 15, 2014)   
• Penguin Cold Cap Helps Prevent Hair Loss During Chemo (Fox10Phoenix, Feb 17, 2014)
• UCSF Tests Cold Caps to Reduce Hair Loss (SFgate.com, Feb 12, 2014)
• Can Wearing  a Cold Cap Prevent Hair Loss From Chemotherapy? (July 24, 2013)
• Researchers Hope Freezing Cold Caps Can Prevent Chemo Hair Loss (Smithsonianmag.com, July 22, 2013) 
• Keep Your Hair With Scalp Cooling (Feb 13, 2013)
• The Innovation Helping Chemo Patients Save Their Hair (Oprah.com, April 2012) 
• Cold Caps May Help Cancer Patients Keep Hair (ABCNews.com, Dec 20, 2010)
• Cold Cap Therapy May Help Women Undergoing Chemo Keep Hair (ABCNews, Oct 28, 2010)
• Chemotherapy: How to Combat Hair Loss (The Telegraph UK, Oct 14, 2010)

COLD CAP STUDIES AND CLINICAL TRIALS:

• No Effect of Scalp Cooling on Survival Among Women With Breast Cancer (December 2014)
• Dignitana AB in meeting with the FDA (October 2014) 
• Clinical Trial: Efficacy and Safety of Dignicap System for Preventing Chemotherapy-Induced Alopecia with DigniCap (June 2014)
• Cold Caps Tested to Prevent Hair Loss During Chemo (July 2013)
• Factors Influencing the Effectiveness of Scalp Cooling in the Prevention of Chemotherapy-Induced Alopecia (May 2013)
• Scalp Cooling Does Not Pose a Risk for Metastasis (March 2011)
• Chemotherapy-Induced Alopecia and Effects on Quality of Life Among Women With Breast Cancer (August 2007)
• Prevention of Chemotherapy-induced Hair Loss By Scalp Cooling (2005)
• Penguin Cold Cap Clinical Trial (2000)

Have you used Cold Caps?
Do you know anyone who has?
Where they even mentioned as an option before you started chemo? 
I'd love to hear your thoughts. Please leave a note below!