What is Chemotherapy?
It is the medical term that refers to the use of drugs to kill cancer cells or to stop them from multiplying in the treatment of cancer.
Why does this treatment cause cancer patients to lose hair?
Hair loss, or alopecia, is one of the most common and distressing side effects of chemotherapy. The drugs used in chemotherapy mostly affect malignant cells that divide rapidly. These drugs that kill cancer cells also affect the healthy cells in our body. These drugs also affect healthy hair cells that are always alive and ready to grow. Depending on how the drugs are administered, how long they are given, and the treatment protocol used, they cause hair loss at different rates. For example, medications administered weekly cause less hair loss than those administered every three weeks, and oral medications cause less hair loss than those administered intravenously.
How does hair loss affect the patient?
Hair loss has a serious psychosocial impact on patients. There are serious consequences such as loss of self-confidence and self-esteem. These effects are more noticeable in female patients. Baldness, an appearance that reveals the cancer disease that patients try to hide from society, causes further distress to patients.
Is it possible to prevent this type of hair loss?
Although hair loss is the most common side effect of chemotherapy, there is less emphasis and concern about preventing or managing this side effect compared to other side effects. There have been various scientific studies on this topic around the world, but the “Scalp Cooling System” is the most effective and scientifically proven method when compared to other methods. It has been available worldwide for about 40 years, but remains extremely rare to be used clinically.
Could you please tell us more about this technique? How does it work?
In this method, special equipment is used to cool the patient's scalp before the treatment, and the treatment begins immediately afterwards. This cooling process continues during chemotherapy. Cooling the scalp causes the capillaries in that area to constrict, preventing the chemotherapy drugs from reaching the scalp and ensuring that the hair cells are minimally affected. Since this system also slows down the functioning of the hair cells, it minimizes the side effects of the drugs that do reach here. This process is performed with specially designed equipment. That equipment is only available in a small number of medical centers in Türkiye. Private Medline Adana Hospital’s Medical Oncology Department has the equipment, because at this hospital, we are committed to taking care of the psychological well-being of the patients, as well as their physical health.
Is This Method Guaranteed to Work?
Hair loss varies from patient to patient and according to the medication regimen used. It is not possible to talk about a guarantee for patients in this regard, but we can say that it is the most effective method currently in practice.
Are There any Side Effects of This Method?
No significant side effects other than headache have been reported, but the cold temperature can cause discomfort in some patients.
Is the Equipment for This Method Widely Available in Türkiye?
They are not widely available because they are expensive systems, and require technical knowledge and skills to use. Currently, Private Medline Adana Hospital is one of the few hospitals in Türkiye to have the equipment.