New technique hailed as ‘powerful double weapon’ against chemo hair loss
Scientists have developed a new technique which they describe as a “powerful double weapon” to prevent cancer patients losing their hair during chemotherapy.
The method combines scalp cooling – where a patient wears a cold cap to help reduce hair loss from the damage caused by the cancer drugs – with a lotion comprising the same antioxidants found in the likes of red grapes.
The study, which has been hailed as a “milestone”, also pinpointed the optimal temperature for scalp cooling to be most effective for keeping hair.
Cold caps are used by some cancer patients during chemotherapy to help minimise the amount of hair they lose.
The technique works by restricting blood flow to the scalp, which reduces the amount of medication reaching the hair follicles.
Now, researchers at Sheffield Hallam University have found cooling the scalp to 18C can prevent hair follicle damage, while cooling to 26C may not provide enough protection to hair follicle cells.
The team has also shown how combining topical antioxidants with cooling could “transform the ability of cooling to protect” against hair loss.
Dr Nik Georgopoulos, an associate professor of cell biology and Transforming Lives fellow at Sheffield Hallam, has been working with Paxman Scalp Cooling for more than a decade. The business has created a device that circulates coolant through a specially designed cooling cap, worn by the patient.
The cooling cap is worn for half an hour before chemotherapy treatment commences, during treatment, and for up to 90 minutes after all the drugs have been given. It is now hoped the new technique, combining scalp cooling with the antioxidants, can be trialled with cancer patients using the Paxman device.