Hair loss can be a difficult side effect to navigate for people with cancer. It affects a person both emotionally and mentally as they deal with a change to their outward appearance while undergoing a serious health battle.
“Hair loss during chemotherapy can cause patients to feel vulnerable and self-conscious,” says Andrea Rhoden, a breast oncology nurse navigator at Wellstar Georgia Cancer Center.
Emotional well-being is an important factor to your physical health, as poor emotional health can lead to higher blood pressure, a weakened immune system and other health issues that can become quite serious for patients with a cancer diagnosis.
Andrea saw a need for a way to prevent hair loss and immediately thought of cooling caps.
Cold scalp cooling caps are caps patients wear before and after chemotherapy that can help prevent hair loss by reducing the damage that chemotherapy causes to hair follicles. They work by cooling the blood vessels in the scalp and reducing blood flow to hair follicles, which restricts the amount of chemotherapy medication that enters hair follicle cells.
While this device cannot reduce hair loss by 100% for all patients, patients can see a hair loss reduction of about 50% when using a cooling cap throughout their treatment journey.
These devices can be costly, so Andrea and her collaborator, Dr. Alicia Arnold, submitted their program, Cooler Heads for Helping Hair Loss During Chemotherapy, for funding from Unite in the Fight Against Cancer 2023.
Unite in the Fight Against Cancer is a 1-mile walk that celebrates and honors all who have been affected by the disease, while raising funds for patient-centered programs.
Andrea and Dr. Arnold’s program received funding from Unite 2023, along with six other programs, covering the costs for two machines and the supplies needed to use them.
“I’m so excited for this opportunity,” Andrea said.
To learn more about this program, follow us on social media to be kept up-to-date on it and other programs funded by Unite in the Fight Against Cancer, which is held annually.
