When will your hair grow back?
When will your hair grow back?
When will your hair grow back?
The answer depends on what treatment you received: chemotherapy,
radiotherapy, or Tamoxifen.
If you have chemotherapy, here's a typical timeline:
From two weeks to three weeks after chemotherapy, a light
hair begins to appear.
A month after the end of treatment, real hair starts to
grow.
Two months or so later, hair grows an inch and grows.
The time taken for hair head to grow fully (pubes, lashes,
eyebrows if hair is also lost) varies from person to person.
In general, the most
falling hair is the one that tends to grow faster. Your hair grows faster than
your eyebrows or eyelashes. It may be the same as your old hair, or it may be
thicker, curly, or narrower than your original hair. Your hair may grow back a
different color. Women who dyed and treated their hair may not remember what
their hair was originally and may be surprised by the color and new texture. In
the end, your hair usually goes back to the way it was after chemotherapy
affected the hair follicles.
If you lose your hair
after full brain radiation due to a malignant brain tumor, it may take four to
six months before an inch of growth appears. Your new hair is probably thinner
than it used to be, and you may have a little bald spot on top of your head. So
you might want to hold onto a wig or other headgear that you bought for special
occasions.
If your hair starts to dilute, the hair loss usually stops
after year one. But mitigation may continue as long as you take a drug, which
can take up to five years. You can use Rome e (chemical name: minoxidyl) for
hair loss from Tamoxifen. It's safe and effective, but expensive. However, many
large pharmacies and shops carry generic versions of rogen that are less
expensive and efficient.
Permanent baldness rarely occurs after several years of
aggressive chemotherapy: hair bulbs are "burned" and closed, so there
is no new growth. Remember, this is a very rare situation. If you are one of
the very few bald women, you may grieve your hair for a long time. But you can
be an expert on what you have to do to feel attractive and help other women
deal with their new loss.
Why and how does hair fall happen?
Hair loss occurs because chemotherapy targets all rapidly
dividing cells-healthy cells as well as cancer cells.
The hair follicles, filled with small blood vessels that
make the hair, are among the body's fastest growing cells. If there's no
cancer, your hair cuts every 23 to 72 hours. But while chemotherapy works
against cancer cells, it also destroys hair cells. In just a few weeks, you
might lose some or all of your hair. If you are undergoing chemotherapy, the
hair loss may be gradual or dramatic: lumps in your hairbrush, handfuls in the
bathtub, or pillows. No matter how it happens, it is sad and frustrating, and
you will need a lot of support during this time. Some chemotherapy drugs only
affect your hair, while others cause the loss of eyebrows, lashes, pubic hair,
and hair on the legs and arms or armpits. The extent of hair loss depends on
which drugs or other treatments are used, and for how long.
All different categories of chemotherapy produce different
reactions. The timing of your treatments will also affect hair loss. Some
chemotherapy is administered weekly in small doses, reducing hair loss. Other
treatments are scheduled every three to four weeks at higher doses, and may be
more susceptible to causing hair loss.
Chemotherapy drugs
Adriamycin (" a "in chemotherapy caf) causes
complete hair drops to the head, usually during the first few weeks of treatment.
Some women lose eyelashes and eyebrows.
Methotrexite (" m "in CMF chemotherapy) reduces
hair in some people, not others. Complete hair loss of methotrexite is rare.
Setoxan and 5 fluorouracil cause minimal hair loss in most
women, but some may lose much. Oxol leads to complete hair loss, including
head, eyebrows, eyelashes, pubic zone, legs and arms.
There are other kinds
of treatments for breast cancer that can also cause hair loss. For example,
Radiotherapy only leads to hair loss in the particular part of the treated
body. If radiation is used to treat breasts, don't get hair on your head. But
there may be hair falling around the nipple, for women with hair on this site.
Hormonal treatments (Tamoxifen ) can reduce your hair, but
not baldness. No matter how cautious and prepared you may be, it is always a
terrible shock when your hair falls out.