Chemotherapy Hair Loss and Growth

 I had my last Chemo with Andriamycin and Cytoxan on Oct. 5th 2022. My hair was basically all gone by then. I missed my eyebrows most of all.

My husband was worried as I wouldn't go outside without a headscarf. He tried to make me feel good about ysekf, I tried to explain it wasn't that I didn't; feel go about me. I know that when I went out with the head cover, people would look at me a little oddly.

I didn't need to make them feel uncomfortable or think they had to feel sorry for me. I didn't need to worry about how I looked as I've always tried to look my best when going out and took pride in my appearance. At home, now that's another story. Bald or in my sloppy clothes, no problem!

He started to notice my eyebrows growing in around the 3rd week in November. Here's me 11/3022

It's been growing ever since. My hair has definite waves that weren't there before! It's also much darker than it was - all over...

Here I am today on 1/30/2023.

My journey continues- sans head cover. Now wat to do about reconstructive surgery? TBD

Breast Cancer Chemotherapy Hair Fallout Update

I had my hair cut short to make future fallout easier to manage. My oncologist said it may just thin out until the next series of infusions. My hair started falling out 8 days into my Taxol (Paclitaxel) infusions. 

It certainly thinned out. It looked like I had a white baby chick on top of my head, only much sparser.

It was no big deal to me, but I kept checking just to see if any more would fall out. I like to be prepared. 

Two days ago I had my second dose of Andriamycin and Cytoxan. My husband came up to me and said, I think your hair has grown and asked me if I wanted to have it cut anymore. I put my hand up to my head, touched my hair, and felt something fall onto my neck. I ran my hand through my hair and, you guessed it, it was falling out–and I mean, FALLING OUT. 

I went to the kitchen trash can, ran my hand over my head and it was like snow falling down. I guess this is the start of the next few days or weeks. Luckily I have dogs to blame for the build-up of white fur on the floor!

The Upside of Chemo Side Effects

 So you thought Chemotherapy was going to be all nasty side effects, feeling awful, looking for answers, wondering what to expect next, well yes- that's all true.

However, there is an upside to your chemotherapy side effects. No, I'm not completely insane. Well, there are times my family would disagree with you, but I digress. 

The point is you are busy with those side effects. They take up your thoughts and you put so much effort into managing them. 

Are you too tired to do the laundry, what's my alternative? Do I take a nap or empty the dishwasher? Why are my hands burning and why won't it stop? Do I feel nauseous enough o take my antinausea meds or am I concerned about being constipated later? If I take something to ensure I won't be constipated, what happens if I end up with diarrhea from my chemo? (Notice a recurring concern here). Will all of my hair fall out at once or will it be a more gradual thinning? Where can I buy good head covers for my balding head? Will I feel better if I buy a silk pillowcase for said balding head? What about bamboo sheets or nightgowns? Did I wash my port shirt? Did I email all of my friends or post an update on facebook? Do I feel like calling my sister? 

The list goes on and on. 

Sometimes you spend time thinking about whether or not you're too tired to do something or if you're in the mood to speak to some people about what you're going through. It's not that you don't want social interaction. Sometimes it takes up a lot of energy–sometimes you don't want a pep talk. 

There are so many things we deal with and think about with our chemo side effects that it becomes all-consuming. That's right all-consuming. So here's the good news. You're not spending time thinking about how effective the chemo might be. You're not thinking about the long-term consequences of having cancer or any recurrence. 

Yes, you thought about those things in the beginning and those thoughts may come into your head from time to time. However, you're so involved with what's happening to you at this very moment that those things are not in the foreground of your thoughts. 

So let's try to be positive and deal with any crappy side effects that may hit us upside the head like a sledgehammer or sneak into our consciousness like a thief in the night (before doorbell cameras). These treatments are only for a short moment in time, or so I tell myself.

Chemotherapy Tricks

 Things happened so fast for me. I barely had time to think about having Breast Cancer. I had so many appointments, immediate surgery, schedules to manage, wondering what I need to do to recover from surgery, backup surgical bras to order, will I go bald, and do I need to order caps in advance to cover my head, just to name a few.

I'll try to touch on many of these items throughout my blog posts. 

Here are just some tips to be prepared before your first infusion:

1. Get an implantable port

I was able to schedule the insertion of a port prior to my first infusion. Granted, it was the morning of, but so worth it to me to not have to mess with IV needles every week! Here's a nice explanation of an implantable port from the Sloan Kettering Website. Ask your doctor if you need one. I did because my particular chemo infusions can be pretty toxic to my veins. Also, my treatments will go on for at least 6 months. It also made the weekly blood tests and any extra blood tests any other doctors needed so easy! At my Cancer Center, they mostly use power ports. 

2. Buy cold socks and cold gloves 

These are readily available online. Just search for chemotherapy socks or gloves. Wear them during your infusion to ward off tingling sensations. I had them in my legs and arms all night after my first infusion and didn’t sleep a wink.

Since wearing these each week, the tingling sensations were greatly reduced. (I've since encountered another problem with tingling). I cant go without these and have worn them during the week too!

3. Buy a Chemo port shirt. 

Again, readily available online. The one I bought has zippers across the shoulders, at the neckline, part way down the front, and across the top of each breast. It has long sleeves which are great even in summer in cold hospital rooms.

The nurse can take your labs from your port, which you give before every infusion. With the shirt, the access tube extends through the zipper opening. She takes my blood and leaves the short access tube in. I can see my Oncologist or go to a waiting room or chemo chair before being hooked up to my infusion. 

The nurses have all commented on my shirt. Even the receptionists have commented about how pretty it is!

Regular shirts with openings in the front work, but everything’s not as easily accessible as it is with the chemo shirt. I have one friend who didn't know about these shirts, She was stripping off her shirt with each infusion and freezing. I bought mine from a Small Business called Port Fashions. They sell their shirts for Women and Men on Amazon and Etsy

4. Bring a blanket, drinks, and, snacks with you. 

The Chemo group may have warm hospital blankets or small bottles of water or juice handy. However, it’s not the same as having a snuggly throw blanket or quilt from home.

Their small bottles are not enough to keep you as hydrated as you need to be on infusion day and throughout your treatments in general. If your infusion happens close to lunchtime, you can get hungry. They may have crackers or an occasional kind soul drops off fresh fruit or bagels, but if you're really hungry, you need nourishments. I've seen patients bring in meals that need to be microwaved. I tend to take nuts, juices, even Ensure. ANything to keep up my nourishment and eat or drink without too much fuss.

5. Bring headphones, AirPods, etc. 

You can’t spend the whole infusion time reading facebook posts! If your hands are covered with cold mittens, you can't scroll very easily. Make it easy to listen to audiobooks, music, etc. You can borrow audio books from your local library. 

6. Buy REAL Silk Pajamas and/or a Silk Pillowcase

OK, so this last one is especially for those with sensitive skin. A real silk (not satin) nightgown, P.J's, nightshirt feels great on sensitive skin– IF and this is a big IF, you wear the nightgown inside out?!?

I mention this because I bought a silk nightgown that feels great on the outside, but is not as nice on the inside. The silk pillowcase I bought is nice and silky on the outside. They are great for those sensitive bald heads some of us are dealing with nowadays. 

I also just bought real bamboo sheets and they have every silk feel to them! They also help to keep you cool–a problem I now seem to have during chemo. 😅 I'm also going to order a nightgown made from bamboo. 

Hopefully, these suggestions will help get you through your chemotherapy infusions regardless of your particular form of cancer.