Cold Caps Users Past and Present, to Save Hair
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I also was in MI when I had treatment and had chemo at RO Beaumont with caps. I had my surgeries at U of M ironically. Feel free to PM me if you have more questions!
Congrats to all finishing up with caps! We need a "like" button on here!
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Hi!! Does anyone know what color your hair grows back? I did 6 rounds of TC. I am a week out and noticing shedding a lot!! I'm just wondering when new growth will happen and what to expect for color and texture. Thanks!!!
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Jumping in on the Latisse question. ( I got help with this from Daniella many mths ago)... I'm using Latisse. Checked around with dermatologists and plastic surgeons in our area that go after the "nip and tuck" business. Latisse pricing directly through them is a bit like old time gasoline wars! I found an option $30 less than other places along with the first time user buy one, get one from Latisse. I am still on my first bottle 5 months later, using 1 drop total (not two) and a much better eyeliner brush to keep from wasting any... At about 12 weeks I began a 3 times a week application scheme that has been just as good....
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Just want to come over and say Toppik might be my new best friend. I'm on Day 35 and just had a HUGE shed this morning after my shower last night.
The other day my best friend told me that she sees my hair thinning a lot but a normal bystander wouldn't know what's going on. There's a nice little thinning bald spot on the crown of my head and I THINK Toppik helped cover that up this morning. Above my ears is also crazy thin but the rest of my hair covers it. I just hope and pray these huge shed days start to come fewer and further between. And dear god let dose dense taxol be somewhat easier on my hair than AC is. *sigh* Sorry ladies, just needed to vent a bit. On the positive note, it's day 35 and I still have HAIR!
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Hang in there Steflove! Like you said it's day 35 and you STILL have hair - that is a great sign that you will get through this with hair!
My hubby actually counted my hairs that I shed the other morning in what looked like my average daily amount of hair loss following my morning light combing....it was 226 hairs.
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I just wanted to add that I took my shower and lost a great deal of hair!! However, I still have full coverage. I started chemo in February, so think of that!! You will keep your hair!! Follow all directions. Cool gentle water only. Try and not wash it to often. Only gentle shampoo. I use kenra. I made it through 6 rounds!! I always followed the directions. I did loose some by my ears and the crown. I really would love someone who's been through it to tell me when the hair will grow back and the texture and color!! As for Lattise I love it. Start using two weeks before, and a few months after. I still have long lashes and eyebrows!! It's expensive but worth it!!
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Well, it's 2 mo PFC and here's what the cold caps did for me
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Looks great!! Any re growth?
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Beat,
Yes! It grew all through chemo leaving me with long white roots, and last month I finally had it trimmed back. The PCC really worked with the Taxol/herceptin regemin so yes it's growing plenty! Eyebrows are coming in black, not black before... And still waiting on the eyelashes
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That's great!! I take a supplement called " hair volume ". I think it's why I don't see white or grey. It naturally keeps my hair dark. It also helped a great deal with keeping it thick, and my nails are normal!! Just thought I'd pass it on, in case anyone was looking for something. I had to have a team of doctors approve it, but it really helped!! You can buy it all Walgreens. It's all natural, mostly Apple extract.
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nettle tea will naturally darken hair a bit
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PFC update for newbies/middlers who are feeling frustrated or blue about thin spots, bald spots, lost lashes and brows:
There's so many new people since the last time I checked in. And I wanted to send out some positive news for you. I am eight weeks PFC today (dose dense taxol/carbo). And by the end I had some pretty thin areas and two very thin/baldish patches on either side of the crown (that fortunately my hair covered). My lashes were gone. My eyebrows were gone. Pretty distressing to lose those. But I wanted to let you know that two months out (and a couple of bottles of Toppik to get me through the rough spots) I have tufts of hair coming in all over the place. My sideburns and hairline have filled in like crazy. I only have to use a quick swipe of a brow pencil at the outer edges of my brows, and my lashes (with the help of Lumigan--a Latisse-like product) are thicker than they were to start. I know it's tough when you're in the middle of it, ladies. But just use your Toppik and your brow pencil and eyeliner and soldier forth. It ends. I'm washing my hair and blowing it dry daily to no ill effect. (Still rinsing with cool water---jinx.) But keep the faith. You'll be ok if you follow the protocol. I even cheated a bit here and there and I'm ok. And I always had enough hair to look normal. It was thinner for sure, but normal looking to the world.
Oh yeah (dancetrancer), and %*)Q@*$ cancer.
, pchPS Steflove, hang in there. The shedding slows down. I was still shedding quite a bit at that point. I still am a tiny bit. Just powder on that Toppik and forget about it. As long as you can fake it through this part, it will grow back in.
Melb, I did five dose dense taxol/carbo sessions, every three weeks (except when my numbers were too low and they bumped me). I had to quit before the sixth bc of neuropathy. Caps worked fine. Just the thinning I described, but it's all growing back in now. Remember your doc is concerned with beating the cancer whichever way works best for your situation. You can power through the capping. My capping days were also really long--sometimes over nine hours. Be careful what you wish for.
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My hair started falling out 10 days after I started my chemo in October 2014. I chose to have my husband shave my head and finally let go of being self conscious about my appearance. I wore head coverings most of the way through my chemo just so I wouldn't make other people feel uncomfortable. I finally decided to stop wearing them after I finished chemo and let the world deal with seeing me bald. It was very refreshing to let it go and just embrace what my life was. My hair had previously been brown (with the help of frequent trips to the salon) and very straight. When it started growing back in, I knew I would have a fair amount of grey, but much to my surprise, my hair came in snowy white with steel grey in the back and awesome waves! I definitely look different than before I started my journey in August 2014 and see it as a reminder that I am and will continue to be a breast cancer survivor!
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To each her own, Bambooangel! Happy to hear you're loving your new look. Good shooting!
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I finally broke down and ordered Latisse. Eye lashes are now about 50% gone. I looked into getting semi-permanent ones and that is not cheap either. After getting an initial set for $180, I'd have to go every 3 weeks for refills for $80 each. Too much time and money.
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BBwithBC45, my doc gave me a scrip for Lumigan, which has the same active ingredient as Latisse I believe. He prescribed it specifically based on the effects of chemo, and my insurance covered it with a quick review. It's a $40 copay but well worth it. My lashes completely fell out and are now super thick about a month after starting it. They were nearly transparent for a couple of weeks, then suddenly quite dark and thick. Something to think about. I just read that you're PFC too, so you should have good results.
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Pch, thanks for the info. I told the pharmacy to order the Latisse already, so I'll have to pay. But you gave me an idea. I'll see if I can argue with my insurance that this is for the effects of chemo. They got out of paying for a wig.
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I'm 2.5 months post cold caps and haven't blow dried my hair yet. I desperately want to, but I'm still shedding. Does anyone have experience blow drying before the recommended time? If so, any negative effects? Thanks.
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For those of you paying so much for Latisse, you might want to try Careprost. It's a lot cheaper and has the same ingredients. You can find it online for around $30.
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Dakjo, I tried blowdrying my bangs about a month or so after cold capping and noticed some shedding. If you use a cooler setting, you should be okay, but I wouldn't chance using a lot of heat.
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Ladies past capping: what color is your hair when it re grows? Very curios. I'm two weeks past my last chemo!!
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Does anyone feel nauseous with the caps? Yesterday was my first Taxol and I felt like I was going to throw up the minute the first cap went on. It got better by maybe cap 4 or 5. I was seriously feeling like throwing in the towel with the caps yesterday.They made me feel so sick and the pain from the cold seemed just awful. Anyone have any tips for making it through 11 more treatments?
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Melb44 - I always took Advil and Xanax before my treatments and I think it may have helped somewhat with cold capping. I did not feel nauseated. I had some pain for the first couple of minutes with the first 2-3 caps, but it was not overwhelming.
BB
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Melb44, Taxol can be nauseating. I'm pretty sure my center gave me antinausea medication while I was being infused. Mention the nausea to the staff before you start the infusion and see if they can give you something. (I get that the capping begins before the Taxol, but whatever gets you through the day, right?) Suladog also mentioned using ginger to help with the nausea as well. I never tried that. But I did take a tranquilizer before I capped. (The stress of it all doesn't help.) And same as BB I got used to the cold after two or three caps. It's not a picnic, but it feels pretty great to have hair. Try to hang in. pch
And congrats beatcancer! I'm very happy for you. My hair grew in the same colors in the same spots as it was. My sideburns were gray/white and came in straight and white. My nape is very dark brown and came in dark. And the diffuse spots coming in match the surrounding hair too. It comes back pretty quickly. Good for you!
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Oh, duh! How quickly I forget. They always gave me anti-nausea Zofran in my premeds, so I never felt nauseated on the treatment day - cold caps or no cold caps. For me the nausea always came the next day around noon and lasted for a few days.
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I was actually more nauseous during the premeds than during the taxol. It came on strong when I got the first cap on. I took a Norco beforehand for the pain. Maybe next time I will just take Extra Strength Tylenol and a Ativan. I don't have any Xanax or I would take that.
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Melb,
my MO had me take 2 norco, an hour before starting, which took care of pain. Between that and raw ginger to suck on, I handled the nausea. Also I drank coconut water during chemo infusions to stay hydrated
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Melb, I remember a very similar reaction to the caps on maybe my 3rd or 4th Taxol. I was super nauseous and didn't think I was going to make it through. I really felt it was more related to the caps and not the Taxol. After that episode, I made sure to always take an Extra Strength Tylenol and an Ativan 60 minutes prior to the first cap. I never had a recurrence. Good luck!
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Tomorrow is it! 5 long months filled with 15 chemo infusions with 95 hours of cold capping. All done tomorrow! My hair had been shedding pretty consistently throughout - probably 200-250 hairs during my morning comb-out but all of a sudden, this week it has drastically slowed down. I'm thinking 50 hairs or less with my morning comb! I don't understand or know why the decrease, but I am so hopeful at this point that things will only get better
The caps work!! Ladies who might be discouraged - especially those on AC plus Taxol, just stay the course and don't comb or mess with your hair any more than absolutely necessary. Here are 2 pics of my hair today, after nearly 20 weeks of chemo. 
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Angiel, chemo? what chemo?
Your hair looks good. If I saw you on the street I would have not thought you went through so much chemo.
Happy that your shedding slowed down so much. Mine seems to have picked up in the last few weeks. As if I had a delayed reaction, and I'm 5 weeks PFC.
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