R-cvp & hair loss

Hi Duikerberry and welcome to this corner of the Community although I am always sorry to see folks joining us. I am Mike and I help around our Lymphoma Groups.

The important word is ‘may’. Everyone will react ever so differently so one size does not fit all.

 I did not have R-CVP but did have some of the same drugs as part of my R-EPOCH and my hair fell out basically over night at about day 14 so 9 days after I finished my first 5 days/nights of chemo.

I woke up and my pillow was covered in hair so went straight in the shower and shaved the lot off - one less thing to stress about. Some folks just find their hair slowly thins out.

I will always highlight the Lymphoma Action website. Lymphoma Action is a small but very active UK Lymphoma Specific Charity who have lots of good reliable information, videos, webinars….

They run regular Regional Lymphoma Online Support Groups and a great Lymphoma Action Buddy Service where people can be linked up with someone who has walked the same treatment journey.

Always around to chat and answer questions.

For anyone with the same question as me at the start of their treatment - this is what I found....  My hair started falling out almost exactly three weeks to the day after the first round of treatment.  Not in thick clumps - but a steady loss each day (and night).  Hair loss was relatively consistent across all six cycles, but it seems to have more-or-less stopped at six weeks past the final (6th) round of R-CVP.  I have found it to be by far the most upsetting/annoying part of the treatment.  That being said, I am not bald.  It was thinning rather than complete loss.  To those who know me, I have much less hair.  However to those who don't, they probably wouldnt know anything was amiss.  I found that being out and about walking was one of the best ways of dealing with hair loss, as I didn't feel it falling out.  I also had a few favourite t-shirts that didn't 'hold' hair.  Hoodies were a no-no as too much hair accumulated in the hood, but sweatshirts worked quite well.  Driving with the window open meant wearing a cap to stop my hair blowing into the back seat.  I assume that by now I probably have new hair growing, so am not sure how this is going to work with my existing hair.  But for me, at least, one of my biggest fears of the whole thing (i.e going bald) has not happened.  Perhaps I am one of the lucky ones.  As people will keep telling you - everyone is different.  Good luck!

Good to hear from you Duikerberry and to read your update.

I do hope that your treatment has done the job on your condition.

I had the same just thinning of hair through the whole treatment with similar R-CHOP. Then six weeks after chemo finished it all fell out! It didn't really bother me by then but I do understand that it does affect others.