Anyone used anything that helps with chemo hair loss?

Hi @corcoranjf, I’m with you there! When I was facing chemo, I knew I’d be losing my long hair so I preemptively had it buzz cut in the hospital by the beautician who runs the wig shop! It was actually a fun experience. My daughter had come for 2 weeks to give her dad and I moral support while I was in the hospital for 5 weeks. So she was with me when I ‘took control’.
We’ve been led to believe that our crowning glory is our hair. The prospect of losing it over the years as I grew older and with my hair naturally thinning filled me with thoughts of ‘what will I do’ then? Like it’s something shameful to lose my hair.

Well, wow, getting the buzz cut was so liberating! My daughter and I giggled over my new look and 2 young chemo nurses came into the room and told me I look pretty bad-ass. Highest compliment from someone 40 years younger! One of them told me I looked like the hot chick from Deadpool and printed out the photo to put on my hospital room wall. 😎
I was without hair for over a year, having lost it 3 more times with chemo, and then a bone marrow transplant took a toll. But I really came to love the ease of just washing my head with a washcloth in the shower and dabbing dry! I rarely wore head covering except when it was cold outside. I owned that look! There is no shame in not having sporting a full head of hair! ☺️

When the hair finally started to make a permanent reappearance, I bore a strong resemblance to Christopher Walken. I adore him so that wasn’t the worst person to emulate. 😂. The hair did return thicker and wavier than I’ve ever had before, which is cool, but now it’s back to high maintenance with a curling iron and scissors! I keep it short myself. I really love that liberated feeling! We can be bald, bold and beautiful!

I hope it’s ok for me to share, I haven’t had hair loss due to chemo but have been experiencing heavy hair loss lately and found a supplement on this website, moonjuice.com. They have all natural ingredients and I’ve used a supplement called Super Hair. All I can suggest is going to the website and reading about the ingredients. It’s a great supplement with ingredients to assist in hair growth. I’ve used it in the past with success and have started using it again with my current heavy hair loss.
My heart goes out to women going through what you are. If my suggestion can be of help, I wanted to share.

I agree with corcoranjf. Anyway, most people do not like their hair in the first place (until they lose it!!!). Just go out and do the things you love and can physically handle. Be happy! Don't worry about your hair - it will catch up with you at some point! Concentrate on your well-being and focus more on your nutrition and exercise. Just keep up your hair appointments to trim off the fuzzy stuff and have a cut that your hair can grow "into". Anyway, that is my two cents from having chemo related hair loss...and finding that it was worth my ongoing 22-years of breast cancer-free survival = to ignore the hair-loss and get on with living which is why I went through my heady medical treatment in the first place! Onward!

I love your comments. I think hair loss is a huge fear for women. My esophageal cancer has recurred after a short remission and I'll find out tomorrow what treatment options are. If it means chemo, I'll do it again even though I don't want to. But I know already I can tough it out.

I bout Nioxin and will give it a try. Thanks

Have you looked into cold cap therapies? There are a few different companies that sell cold caps that cool down your scalp after chemo and reduces hair loss. Not sure how it compares to the other treatments.

Talika Lipocels is working great for me for eyelashes and eyebrows. I started using a month before treatment.
Talika Lipocils Expert 10ml -... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003H67R96?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

Just a follow up to my original post about hair growth products that work. I am using nioxin and I think it is helping, but in the meantime, I have purchased several wigs. Some of my friends like the wigs better than my old real hair. I have matched my own color perfectly and taken the wigs to my hair stylist and most people would just think I had cut my hair shorter. I am getting by for now until I have my natural hair back. Will be a long process I think.

I researched cold caps before I started chemo almost 3 years ago. My oncologist was dismissive and wouldn't discuss it. They've been used extensively in Europe for over 10 years, but here I think they're still experimental and most insurance won't cover. Perhaps that is changing. The cap is used before, during and after chemo to limit the drugs making their way to the scalp. I had a variety of wigs, but I lived in my ball cap that had hair attached. Easy to flip on, it was not hot like a wig.

I was aware of the cold cap, but my center did not have it. However, we did order cold gloves, socks and a hat online, although the hat was not as effective as the bigger, colder one you are talking about. All were pre-frozen for the treatments. The socks and gloves helped, but the cold cap was not effective enough. I am now on the other side of the chemo treatments trying to encourage my hair growth. The quality of the hair I do have is really terrible.