Hair loss - when to cut...

Hi 

I had my first chemo on Dec 13th 21 by Christmas my hair was beginning to shed. I got up New year's Day decided to brave the shave. I like you say although sad felt I had taken control. Good luck with  all your treatment. I am just done with 9 months of it all and hair coming back x

Sam2312 I was EC x6 and told hair will shed immediately so like you I decided to take control .

Before first chemo I had it cut into short pixie style from then on under hairdressers guidance I didn’t use styling products or hairdryer just mild shampoo and finger dry . Against the odds hair didn’t start to shed until approx 3/4 cycle . Kept it cut short to scalp for a few weeks then no 2 shave

Had wig same as pixie cut so on the odd occasion I wore it people couldn’t tell difference . It was winter so more use of hats etc 

good luck whatever you decide . 

Hi Sam2312

I had my first EC chemo 3 weeks ago and my hair started to shed about a week ago. Prior to starting chemo I had my long hair cut into a short bob and bought a wig in a similar style. I also bought a couple of head coverings. 

Although I've lost a lot of hair it looks thin all over at the moment with no obvious bald spots. Once my scalp starts to show I'm going to get my husband to use his clippers and cut it short all over.

As for how you'll feel in the first week, that's difficult to say as I think it affects everyone differently. I felt under the weather rather than ill and by day 12 felt completely normal again. The main thing that I noticed was that I lost my sense of taste but that came back after about a week. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the second dose, due Wednesday, will follow the same or even a better pattern.

x

Sorry Sam2312 forgot to mention the EC we all react differently but the first bit of advice I would give is make a diary of your side effects day 1 being day of chemo ..21 day fore next .

Most people find a pattern emerge mine was tired and nausea with headaches for 2/3 days then a couple of days still rough as steroids wore off . By day 10 a improvement until day 15 then felt a lot bette so would plan treats …days out etc for then .

EC can be very dehydrating so drink plenty before and after to flush your system . With regards first one it can feel worse than rest to come as your body adjusts .

As I said we all react differently so just listen to your body rest and eat when body tells you to . Eat little and often keeping little treats in fridge ..taste buds can change so it’s hit and miss to find things that  you can enjoy . I hated water from our area eventually found a cheap cream soda in supermarket no added sugar that I could drink .

Have a look on the chemo thread there  is a link for hints at the top of the page 

here are the links hope it helps 

https://community.macmillan.org.uk/cancer_types/breast-cancer-forum/f/questions-about-diagnosis-and-treatment/240592/june---august-2022-breast-cancer-chemo

community.macmillan.org.uk/.../chemo-aids-shopping-list-gathered-from-breast-group-memebrs

Hi Northerner

Thanks for all these tips!

I'm certainly hoping that the first one will turn out to be the worst as I seem to have tolerated it pretty well. I have kept a diary of how I felt and it will be interesting to see how the first treatment compares to the others.

x

Hi @Latchbrook sorry hear another round for you .

Must admit I believe I tolerated EC quite well managing the symptoms rather than fighting them is what I think helps . At times felt like I had a pharmacy on call   

I did get most of the SE but as I keep telling people not all of them or all at once so got oral thrush , dry eyes, mouth ulcers etc etc  but told unit and was given medication to deal with it . 
Are you having the usual 3 then moving to something else ? Like most chemos EC is cumlative ..for me because I was on 6 I found after no.4 it took longer to recover my bloods were fine but fatigued so my unit  & onco delayed by one week no 5 then 6 so able to cope  

good luck with rest of plan 

Welcome, sorry you find yourself here. I cut my long hair into a pixie cut before chemo, then it started to shed significantly about 10 days in so I shaved it to a buzz cut then. I also had my head wet shaved at a male barbers in my village about 2 weeks after that as the little bits were falling out and driving me mad. I must say that they do not recommend a wet shave as the chances of a cut and infection are higher but he was incredibly gentle, didn’t cut me and I didn’t regret doing it. I had my last chemo in December and now have a very short pixie cut again as it’s growing back. All the best x

I had quite short hair in an undercut pixie before starting EC chemo. I tried cold cap on the 1st cycle but it didn’t work too well for me. It started shedding on around day 14 of the cycle and I had lost over 60% on top of my head by the second cycle. I gave up on cold cap and cropped it to a number 3 all over. I wash it every day and massage what’s there so I lose whatever is to come out that day quite easily in the shower. I am on day 12 of cycle 4 and still have a fair bit round the back but bald with some fluff on top and at the sides. As soon as I cropped it short all the discomfort associated with hair loss disappeared. 

I didn’t start shedding unti a week after my second cycle, but it shed quite a lot! I had shoulder length thick hair, but decided to ask my sister to buzz it off for me. I sort if regretted that because it never really all disappeared, I expected a shiny shaved head, but my hair didn’t completely go. ( I never cold capped). I wish now I’d just kept what was there, cut shorter perhaps. Even though I’d still have to cover it, I think in hindsight, it would have been easier to grow it back, it’s growing now 12 weeks or so after my last chemo and think it would be easier if I’d left it. Also I met a lady in radiotherapy waiting room who’d cold capped, she said her hair looked like s**t during chemo, but had grown back quickly afterwards, it looked great only six weeks after her last treatment, so give it some thought. It’s hard to think about the end of the journey at the moment. But I wish I had. Best of luck xxx

I suffered really bad mentally with the post partum hair loss and just don't think I could cope with going through that again on top of everything else so I'm pretty set on shaving it off until chemo is done...i get what you are saying about how it might not fall out and I know it affects everyone differently but I've been told I will lose it pretty quickly by numerous health professionals and i just dont want to take the risk as i feel i am barely holding it together at the moment as it is and i need to stay strong for my daughter as well as to get through all of this. As silly as it sounds, I need to take back some control in this whole wretched situation as I feel everything has been taken away from me so far. I was still breastfeeding when I found the lump and had to stop instantly when neither me or my daughter was ready so that isn't helping my mental health either as my hormones have gone crazy too