In focus: hair - scalp cooling

[OvacomeSupport]

Hello

Continuing our series of posts on hair, this week we're focusing on scalp cooling.

Although there isn’t a way to completely prevent hair loss due to chemotherapy, scalp cooling can help some people to keep more of their hair for longer during treatment. It works on the basis that reducing the temperature of the scalp also reduces blood flow to the hair roots. This means that less of the chemotherapy drug reaches the hair follicles where it can cause damage. It doesn’t work for everyone, but some people find that it helps to reduce or delay their hair loss. If you’d like to try it, ask your team whether it is available at your hospital and would be suitable for you.

If you have scalp cooling, a ‘cold cap’ is fitted to your head about 30-40 minutes before your chemotherapy starts and is either filled with cooling gel or has liquid coolant circulated through it. You may be asked to wet your hair to cool the scalp and help to keep the cap in close contact with your head. You may also be asked to put some conditioner in your hair to help when the cap is removed.

The cap will stay in place during your treatment. If you’re using the gel cap, the gel will need to be changed every 20-40 minutes to keep it cool and you can walk around with it on. The liquid coolant system doesn’t need changing but stays plugged in, so you won’t be able to walk around except for short periods such as to go to the toilet.

The cap will also be left in place for 20-90 minutes after chemotherapy finishes, depending on which drugs you’ve had so you’ll need to bear in mind that it will make your chemotherapy days longer..

An example of a cooling system is The Paxman System, which you can read more about and see photos and videos of at paxmanscalpcooling.com/ .

Many people find scalp cooling uncomfortable, particularly the first 15-20 minutes, because the cap is fitted tightly to your head, it can feel heavy and is very cold. It can also cause headaches, forehead pain, nausea, light-headedness and a feeling of coldness not just in the head. If you feel uncomfortably cold, you can wear warm clothing, use a blanket and have hot drinks. You can also ask for a painkiller before the cap is applied. It generally becomes easier to tolerate after a while, however, if you find it too uncomfortable to cope with, you can tell the nurses you want to stop. There is more information about making scalp cooling more comfortable at cancerhaircare.co.uk/comfor.... After the cold cap is removed, you may like to cover your wet hair with a hat or scarf for the journey home.

If you would like to share your experience of scalp cooling or have any tips on having it that other members might find helpful, please leave a comment.

Below are some useful websites if you would like to read more about this:

about-cancer.cancerresearch...

macmillan.org.uk/informatio...

cancerhaircare.co.uk/scalp-...

If you have any questions about scalp cooling, please do get in touch with us.

Best wishes

Julia (Support Services Officer)

[Neona]

I used the Paxman cold cap and it was well worth the extra trouble. The hospital has 2 machines but they are well tucked away and I needed to really insist that I wanted to use the cap. I took 2 paracetamol about half an hour before the machine was turned on. The first 2 minutes was a bit teeth clenching but was reasonably comfortable after that. I couldn’t get my glasses on under the tight sides of the cap so had to do without them. The cap didn’t fit well on the crown and I think it may be necessary to pad out the top of the cap with something. Towards the end of treatment ( standard frontline 6 infusions over 18 weeks) I was a bit thin on the crown but otherwise looked fairly normal. Probably lost about half the hair overall but hard to say.

I thoroughly recommend the cold cap - not just because it helped me to feel normal but also because it gave me some control over my treatment and this helped a lot with my loss of confidence and depression issues that seem to follow having major surgery.

It is unlikely that the hospital will offer the use of the cold cap but very likely that it is available so persistence may be needed!

[OvacomeSupport Partner My Ovacome Team in reply to Neona]

Hello Neona

Thank you very much for sharing your experience.

Best wishes

Julia

[Haeh]

Hi! I used the cold cap for 17 sessions, very doable once you get over the initial 15 or so minutes. It is well worth preservering. Take someone with you to distract you from the cold. My daughter played travel games, Scrabble and cards with me. I did lose some hair from the crown, but not enough that I had to wear my wig. It does get easier, I used to nap during the later ones!

[OvacomeSupport Partner My Ovacome Team in reply to Haeh]

Hello Haeh

Thank you very much for sharing your experience and for those helpful suggestions.

Best wishes

Julia