Cold Caps Users Past and Present, to Save Hair
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Moo Goo has a product for scaly scalps. They're now in the U.S. so postage isn't expensive.
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Jbandkb, they worked their way through the length of my hair when I gently combed over a period of about 2 weeks. When I could see big pieces, I used a tweezers and gently pulled the pieces out through my hair being careful not to grab individual hairs as well. It was very tedious.
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Hi may I ask how many treatments you have had and is it truly working. I want ton save my hair for my young kids. I don't want to make them get upset about it.
Thank you
my first treatemtn is 8/27
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The caps worked for many of us here. My story and photos are on my blog. I did TC x4. My son was also young at the time of my treatment. He just turned 9 and still doesn't know I had cancer or did chemo. I plan to tell him when the time is right. Happy I used the caps.
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motherofmany, I saved my hair with cold caps - did 4 TCH treatments (taxotere, carboplatin, and Herceptin) back in 2012. You can see my pics through the link on my signature.
What regimen are you doing? It may make a difference - some have had less success with AC, although it really varies on a case by case basis with that regimen. (adriamycin & tax)
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HAS ANYONE USED ELASTAGEL??? OPINIONS?
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Motherofmany - I am using cold caps and am on the dose dense AC and then weekly Taxol program. I have finished the 4 ACs and 7 Taxols so far. I still have quite a bit of hair but it has really thinned. I luckily had really thick hair before all of this so it isn't really that notcabley to most people.
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So my hair is a frizzy mess these days. Anyone have advice on product that I could use to help.
I have been using this dermorganic spray but it isn't cutting it anymore. It helps but so much frizz. I still have 5 more Taxols to go.
http://www.ulta.com/ulta/browse/productDetail.jsp?productId=xlsImpprod4480135
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Alibeths - I used Chemo Cold Caps (due to it being more cost effective for my treatment schedule), and they rent out Elastogels. If you go that route, I recommend making sure that you really knead the caps on the top so that way they make contact with your scalp. I failed to do that the first time, and lost a lot of hair on my crown. Luckily, Toppik filled it in nicely, and my hair continued to grow even during chemo. Now I have little alfalfa sprouts of varying lengths where I lost the most hair.
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Melb, I totally can relate to you...I started with very thick hair that is naturally wavy or frizzy. I've been layering hair products starting with 7 Seconds by Unite, then using Moroccon Oil brand products (either spray Frizz Control or their leave-in hydrating creme) and then Oribe Mositurizing Hair Creme or Altera Bamboo Frizz Correcting Hair Lotion or their Thickening Creme. It helps keep the frizziness at bay but yet, I'm not a greasy mess from too many products. Someone on this board a while back had recommended Sea Chi Leave-in Conditioner. I have that one also but it dries to more of a "wet" look but eliminates frizziness. I have amassed an insane amount of products as I've tried to find the "right" balance & style for my hair these days. Great to hear you are having success with caps with the ACT combo!!
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Thanks Angiel!
I figured you would know! You are such a wealth of info. I ordered the 7 seconds and the Altera Lotion. Hopefully that will help. I am glad I have hair but it is so crazy frizzy.
I am really starting to notice how thin my hair is now but luckily no bald spots except for above my ears which is covered. I think the shedding might finally be slowing down a bit. My MO is amazed that is still have hair. She was very skeptical. I think my BS is really surprised too and calls me the cold cap queen. I am so sick of chemo though. I have 5 more Taxols to go. Finally can count them on one hand.
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what are these cold caps? I noticed a lot of these posts were from 6 years ago. I wonder if any of you folks still check out these discussion boards. One of the ladies had a diagnosis very similar to mine which is a rare diagnosis. I have triple negative ILC Stage 1a, grade two >1 cm. I wonder if this person still posts on these discussion boards and if so how she is doing these days so many years later. I wonder what her course of chemo was back then . Mine is three months of TC , four treatments spaced three weeks apart. I also had a lumpectomy and am planning n skipping radiation and considering a bilateral mastectomy instead. I would love to hear more about these cold caps and if folks still use these things and if they worked well to prevent hair loss, where you get them, how they work, what they cost etc. so if you all see this post I would love to hear from you especially the lady with triple negative ILC which is quite uncommon. Thanks so much.
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Cinderella I used the caps about 4 years ago and my story with photos is on my blog...link below. They worked for me. I hope one of the girls that have used them more recently will post prices....not sure if the prices have changed in the past 4 years. I also had TCx4. The caps work well for that type of chemo.
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Cinderella many who are diagnosed, treated, and back to "normal" life are no longer subscribed to these threads. Several of us do stay on to guide the newbies. If you want to speak to that particular person with a similar diagnosis to yours, I suggest you private message her. You will have a better chance of connecting with her. Regarding info on cold caps, I encourage you to read bco's page on it and browse this thread. They do work. See my pics (link in my signature).
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CInderella, I don't have the same diagnosis as you, but I did have the same chemo regimen and the cold caps worked great for me. I had long hair and although it did thin, no one could tell except me. If you want to keep your hair, cold capping is the way to go!
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Cindarella,
I had a different chemo than you but I cold capped and kept my shoulder length hair, they really do a great job if you want to save your hair.
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Have any of you ladies taken promethasize for nausea? I was just given Zofran to try. I was originally given Ativan which helped and prochloperizine which did nothing. Had 2nd chemo yesterday and felt like shit all day after. They also gave Ativan in premeds this time and still felt crappy. Had the same reaction with 1st round.
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CinderellaNC,
I used the Penquin Cold Caps this year. My chemo was. TC x 4 (every 3 weeks). They worked for me and I'm so glad I saved my hair. I think if you click on my name you can see my posts and pictures.
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Ladies,
I finished my four AC on July 27 and started the first of 12 weekly Taxol on Monday. Last week while I was on vacation, my scalp was really itchy.
Just noticed today why. I have LICE!!!!
I'm surprised they survived the cold capping on Monday!
Any advice? I'm going to call a professional nit picker tomorrow morning.
Argh! I really want to keep my hair since I've done 5 cold cap treatments and have 11 more Taxol.
Cindy
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Hi ladies, this thread is very helpful. I've read tons and tons of posts here and also have visited many of your blogs and am so thankful to those sharing their experiences. Chemo starts next week for me (4 rounds of TC every 3 weeks) and I have some questions. I've read that some people cap in between treatments and am wondering if I should also do this as well and why? Also, I have thick hair and am wondering if wetting my scalp slightly will help give an all around even coldness. As it stands now I can already tell that some parts of my hair will get colder than other parts due to the thickness of my hair in some parts. Finally, should I put my hair into side pigtails or just let it hang naturally?
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SoCalGrl - I wet my hair before, and then in between, about ever third cap change. I let it hang naturally since a ponytail got in the way of the base of the cap. i didn't cap in between sessions because I figure the whole idea is to freeze your scalp while the chemo is running through your veins, so I don't think there's any added benefit to capping in between infusions, but that's just my opinion.
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ladies, what is the recipe for apple cider mixture to help with the itchy scalp?
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Alice 12,
Just make sure it isn't lice. I just spent 3 hours having a nit picker go through my hair.
If anyone else finds lice, I strongly recommend getting a good nit picker. I just used Lice Happens and she was amazing. She trimmed the dead ends of my hair when she realized it was pulling out more hair. She took her time to be gentle. She suggested I use the treatment foam each comb rather than a conditioner. The foam dissolves the glue that binds the egg to the hair.
Turns out I must have had lice for months. Wish I realized it before chemo. But don't depend on cold capping to kill lice because those suckers survived 5 cold cap treatments.
Hope my husband is as gentle. At least I'm starting Taxol and hope my hair starts to grow back!
Keep you updated.
Cindy
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Wow astrogoddess! I can't imagine lice surviving the cold capping! Glad you were able to get it taken care of without much damage to your hair. My hair started growing back during Taxol but I still did shed a lot. I've been done with Taxol for 6 weeks now and my shedding has drastically reduced.
SoCalGrl, I had very thick hair also...I didn't wet my hair per PCC instructions. It doesn't matter if certain areas of your hair are colder, it's the scalp that must be cold, so don't worry about that. Also, let your hair just hang free and change your part with every cap change.
Alice, I just mixed equal parts ACV and water and put in a spray bottle.
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hi all,I don't post much on this thread, but this is my daily read last 5 months through chemo. I had dense dose AC and weekly taxol with carbo every 3 weeks, probably most chemo and longest anyone can get. I did cold caps, through AC, I was very skeptical and was shedding a good amount as I started with thin fine hair.
I finished chemo last week and I am off to Paris today for a week. I really glad I did cold caps, a lot work, very long days especially these weekly taxol, but I am glad I did. I lost about 30% of my hair, no real bald spots, just overall thinned. My hair started re-growing around 3rd week on taxol after a big post AC shed. Now i have 2 inch fly away everywhere. I took biotin every day and actually used the cold cap from my freezer everyday in between treatments. I just want to say cold cap can work with ACT. Oh my lashes are gone :
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Hey ladies, I'm back after my little emotional breakdown a few weeks ago. Thank you for all the love and support!!!
I decided to continue with the cold caps, figured I lasted this long, I might as well try keeping the little hair I have left. But every hair wash results in a TON of shedding, and I'm still shedding a few hundred strands a day every day. Toppik is my life saver right now but it just makes me feel gross and dirty. I did buy a hair topper yesterday online and it's coming in a few days. I know the cold cap reps say not to put anything on your hair during treatment but umm...it can't really get much worse and I know it will make me feel better. I'll see how it feels and go from there.
I THINK I'm starting to see some hair growth but my natural hair is SO grey and my 'old' dyed hair is so dark that it's hard to tell. I see little sprouts of grey and i'm really hoping it's new growth and not just breakage. My little sideburns on my face are coming back so that's a good thing.
7 freakin more taxol/carbo treatments...thats all I keep telling myself!!
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do we need to rinse the apple vinegar mixture? or, we just rinse it when we have hair wash.
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I didn't wet my hair either!! Too cold!
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Steflove,
Sending you lots of good wishes for super hair strength and growth as you battle on!
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thank you, beatit! Let's go strong hair follicles!
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