Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2024 Nov 1;32(11):762.
doi: 10.1007/s00520-024-08940-2.

Scalp cooling therapy for chemotherapy-induced hair loss in patients with breast or gynecological cancers-an Asian tertiary institution experience

Victor Guan Hui Lee  1 , Jerold Loh  1 , Fu Hui  2 , Raghav Sundar  1 , Belinda Tan  2 , Moy Chong Lee  2 , Hui Ying Lin  2 , Lay Ching Ong  2 , Nisha Visvanadan  2 , Samuel Guan Wei Ow  1 , Andrea Li Ann Wong  1 , Gloria Hui Jia Chan  1 , Siew Eng Lim  1 , Yi Wan Lim  1 , David Shao Peng Tan  1 , Yvonne Ang  1 , Joan Choo  1 , Matilda Xin Wei Lee  1 , Natalie Yan Li Ngoi  1 , Soo Chin Lee  1 , Richard Paxman  3 , Anna Parker  3 , Yee Mei Lee  4 , Joline Si Jing Lim  5   6   7
Affiliations

Scalp cooling therapy for chemotherapy-induced hair loss in patients with breast or gynecological cancers-an Asian tertiary institution experience

Victor Guan Hui Lee et al. Support Care Cancer. .

Abstract

Purpose: Scalp cooling therapy (SCT) improves chemotherapy-induced alopecia (CIA), but there are few published data about its efficacy in an Asian-predominant population. We report our tertiary institution experience of SCT in patients with breast or gynaecological cancers undergoing chemotherapy.

Methods: The Paxman scalp cooling system was employed for eligible women with breast or gynaecological cancers receiving anthracycline or taxane-based chemotherapy. Only patients with Grade (G) 0-1 alopecia by common terminology criteria for adverse events (CTCAE) version 4.0 were eligible initially, but patients with G2 alopecia were later included in the study. SCT was performed at each chemotherapy cycle, commencing 30 min prior to and continuing up to 90 min after completion of the drug infusion. Patients were assessed at the start and end of each session for hair preservation (defined as G0-2 alopecia) and comfort level of SCT (rated on a 5-point visual scale). The primary end point was success of hair preservation or hair regrowth after completion of all cycles of chemotherapy.

Results: Eighty-three patients were enrolled over a period of 18 months from December 2017 to October 2019, with a total of 510 scalp cooling cycles performed. 94.0% (n = 78) of patients reported a comfort score of 3 and above, indicating that the procedure was comfortable, upon a 5-point visual scale. Patients receiving weekly paclitaxel had highest success in hair preservation at 76.7% (23/30 patients), with a lower rate of hair preservation observed for the 3 weekly paclitaxel regimen (50%, 2/4 patients). In contrast, only 1 patient (5.3%, 1/19 patients) who underwent chemotherapy with anthracycline and cyclophosphamide achieved hair preservation.

Conclusion: SCT is well tolerated in an Asian-predominant population. Among women with breast or gynaecological cancers receiving taxane and/or anthracycline based chemotherapy, those who underwent SCT were about 50% more likely to achieve hair preservation or hair regrowth, as compared to historical controls.

Keywords: Asian population; Breast cancer; Chemotherapy-induced alopecia; Gynaecological cancer; Scalp cooling therapy.

PubMed Disclaimer

Comment in

References

    1. Koszalinski RS, Williams C (2012) Embodying identity in chemotherapy-induced alopecia. Perspect Psychiatr Care 48(2):116–121 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Rosman S (2004) Cancer and stigma: experience of patients with chemotherapy-induced alopecia. Patient Educ Couns 52(3):333–339 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Hesketh PJ, Batchelor D, Golant M, Lyman GH, Rhodes N, Yardley D (2004) Chemotherapy-induced alopecia: psychosocial impact and therapeutic approaches. Support Care Cancer 12(8):1 - DOI
    1. Rossi A, Fortuna MC, Caro G, Pranteda G, Garelli V, Pompili U, Carlesimo M (2017) Chemotherapy-induced alopecia management: clinical experience and practical advice. J Cosmet Dermatol 16(4):537–541 - DOI - PubMed - PMC
    1. Rossi A, Caro G, Fortuna MC, Pigliacelli F, D’Arino A, Carlesimo M (2020) Prevention and treatment of chemotherapy-induced alopecia. Dermatol Pract Conceptual 10(3):e2020074 - DOI

MeSH terms

LinkOut - more resources