Hello Mumkat

I'm sorry to hear that you've recently been diagnosed with breast cancer and that you're due to start chemotherapy treatment in the new year. I hope that your recovery from the mastectomy and subsequent node clearance has progressed well. 

Hopefully, some of our members who have personal experience with a cold cap will post to share their stories with you. In the meantime, you can find some previous posts on the forum by entering the term "cold cap" into the search box at the top of the page. You might find it useful to read through some of those comments. 

It's good to hear that you have the option to get a wig incase you feel that you want to use one at any point over the coming months. I know lots of members have spoken about how they've found hats, scarfs and beanies useful during chemo as well. We have some information about hair loss on our website. 

Whatever decision you make Mumkat, I wish you well with this next phase of your treatment plan. Know that we're here for you if you have any questions, or concerns or need a safe space to put down how you're feeling. 

Best wishes, 
Jenn
Cancer Chat moderator 

Thank you Jenn, had a few issues with leaking and a seroma from first op but healing better now. I will use the search options, Im still trying to navigate my way around the site. Thanks again for your reply x

Hi Mumkat,  I had chemo and opted not to use the cold cap.  Chemo can be long enough and I think that it adds on about 2 and a half hours and can be painful.  My hair started growing back straight after chemo ended.  It grew back slowly and it first came back very curly and it was a quite grey.  My hair did go back to its natural wave and is same colour now (help of a box) but it is thinner than before.  I think its a personal choice.  I wish you well on your chemo journey. x

Thank you for your reply (sorry I'm just seeing it) I'm almost  sure I won't bother with the cold cap. I picked my wig the other day just need to go back and get it shortened. I was more emotional doing this than I have been at any of my hospital appointments or ops, didn't think I would be. I'm thinking it's a mixture of my diagnosis sinking in as its been very fast getting my ops and I've not really had time to think about it and also I've kept my diagnosis private and realising people will know once I start to lose my hair. Can I ask if you lost your eyebrows and lashes too?  And any tips for keeping scalp healthy during treatment. Thanks again for sharing your experience and I hope you are well x

Hi Mumkat,  hope you are recovering after your operations.  I started losing my hair two weeks to the day after my first chemo started.  I found this very distressing, I had long blonde hair but had it cut short before the chemo.  When it started falling out I found it quite painful and my scalp was very sensitive.  My husband shaved my head and then the pain in scalp stopped.  I lost eyelashes, eyebrows and all other body hair as well. I quite liked my wig, made me look younger lol.  I only wore my wig when I went out and at home I wore soft caps because like you I started chemo in January and it was very cold.  All I did was keep my head warm and moisturized.  It is a hard journey but it is okay.  The best bit of advice I got was try to stick to same routine when possible.  I even carried on having wine with my evening meal.  I wish you well and here if you need to chat x Lee

Hi Mumkat, Sorry you're about to face chemo, but it is amazing how we cope. On my first pre chemo appointment, there was a lady who was on her last treatment; she had opted not to have the cold cap, but pulled a mad Ziggy Stardust wig out of her bag to go home. I have no idea who she was, but that set the tone for me: she rocked it her way! 

I didn't have the cap and i enjoyed wearing a whole variety of hats and scarves and even nothing (especially if I needed something done - people will bend over backwards to help). hair came back easily and finally settled near to my old look, Seriously, concentrate on yourself and do not fret on other peoples views. 

I found sparkling water and ginger helped best with slight nausea.

Take care: you've got it!

Thank you for reply, you ladies are all inspirational. Thanks for putting things into prospective too! Can't deny I'm very anxious about the chemobut reading your replies honestly do help x

Hi Mumkat  I made the decision not to cold cap during chemo. I started losing my hair after the second cycle and must admit I did have a little cry. However, I did get a variety of lovely hats and wore a wig if socialising. After 3 cycles of EC, I went on to 4 cycles of docetaxel. My hair actually started growing back before I had my last cycle of docetaxel. I did lose eyelashes and eyebrows towards the end of my treatment, but after a few weeks they started growing back. To begin with my hair appeared more grey than previously, but several months on has got darker. Apart from being a bit fuzzy at the front, it is straight, as it was before. I wish you well on your journey moving forward. Xx

Thank you for reply, it's great hearing everyone's experiences and how positive everyone is xx