Hello lovely people!! Hope everybody is well!! I have a quick question… I’ve had my Oncology appointment and he informed me I’m very likely to lose my hair but not just my head hair… eyelashes and eyebrows too. Blew me away 
now, I’m not a girly girl at all and make up etc terrifies me haha. I’ve been following a lady on tiktok who has alopecia and she has her own line of eyebrow transfers which look amazing. Ive ordered those, but now I’m stumped on lashes. So last time I tried to do my own lashes i used too much glue and glued my top and bottom set of lashes together, so I’m not 100% confident about putting on a strip myself lol. My question is, can I get lashes put on or do you think there will be something in the glue or whatever that could react with the chemo? I’ve heard that using black nail varnish saves your nails so I’ll give that a go too.
Funny thing is, I dont care about my hair. Thats not really an issue for me. And the eyebrows and eyelashes arent either BUT I reckon I’d look very weird without them lol. I dont have much confidence in my face for me to go without that too lol. Sorry for rambling!! Just looking for some advice haha
Hi Zaran!
I had chemo for breast cancer and lost ALL my hair (yep, in places you don’t think about)!!
However, I didn’t bother with trying to use ‘falsies’ and once my chemo stopped my lashes returned very quickly, eyebrows soon after and hair took a while as you get the fuzzy soft stuff first. I used to just draw my eyebrows in and wore hats or wigs and people didn’t notice I had no lashes. However, you can get dust in your eyes more so wearing sunglasses etc helps stop that.
Talking of the fuzzy soft stuff, if you get it on your face do not shave it off! If you hsvae it will returned stronger so juist leave it and eventually it disappears.
Your friends will love you however you look so just do your own thing and stay positive. I wish you well withy our treatment and hope my ramblings helps a little!
Regards
DeeDee
Hello @zaran oh how your message reminded me of myself 3 months ago I’m a beautician and had that same dread that I would look weird without my lashes… and when they started to fall out honestly I didn’t really care as I had just had a scan that showed how well the chemo was working and that I was almost cancer free… however, eyeliner may be your trick. You don’t want to be putting any false lashes on your remaining lashes as it will put too much pressure on your already fragile lash line. Pop a little liner on your upper lash water line and if your feeling brave then pop a little on the lash line aswell to add definition and hopefully that will make you feel a little more like yourself. It did with me.
Also my experience with EC and taxol (currently on taxol) my lashes fell out with the EC chemo but have started to grow back now I’m on taxol 
im able to wear mascara again. also luckily its summer so ive been relying a lot on my sunnies to hide the lashes and brows
I felt exactly the same way as you. Shaving my hair after one cycle didn’t massively bother me. In fact, it had no control over me anymore and I kind of liked that.
The eyelashes were the bit I dreaded.
I’m about to have my last cycle of 6 x ECT. The EC didn’t take my lashes at all. It was the Docetaxel for the last 3 cycles that took my remaining head stubble and my eyelashes and eyebrows. When I say took, I still have a thin eyebrow (think eyebrows circa 1997) and I probably have 30-40% of my eyelashes but without makeup I look soooooo cancery. The best thing I’ve found is just using a normal eyebrow pencil and keeping it subtle and natural looking and then I apply mascara and use a kohl pencil to do the absolute edge of my inner lids. It gives the appearance of my eyelashes being normal but without being heavy makeup. I went to the Look Good Feel Better thing and there’s was about eyeshadow and eyeliner outside the lid and it was all a bit draggy for me compared to what I would normally wear.
X
Completely shocked me the order of hair loss!
@zaran Mine went in this order;
Pubes
Armpits
Head
Face (all fuzz…that’s a total upside!)
Legs (and a little sporadic for months)
Eyebrows
Eyelashes
Head has regrown between cycles and then gone again. The original hair only completely left after 4 cycles but it was 50% gone after 1 cycle, hence the shave!
You’ll discover just how much pubes direct your wee once they’re gone. Who knew?
Hahaha that made me laugh!! I noticed how much having the DIEP reconstruction redirected my wee!! Too much info probably but i feel like they pulled my tummy up to stitch it together and like pulled everything else up too going for a wee after was a whole new experience haha!
Get your eyebrows semi permanent tattooed immediately, you can’t have it done once you start chemo. It’s a game changer and stops that “hardboiled egg look”. Eyelashes I lost but couldn’t tolerate falsies so just upped my eye makeup and no one noticed.
Look good feel better are a charity who offer free makeup sessions and an amazing makeup goodie bag to breast cancer patients, definitely look them up in your area
Good luck, I was incredibly vain and the worse the chemo got the more slap I applied 
Hi @zaran, I finished chemo (EC and Paclitaxel) 8 weeks ago. I lost all my head hair, legs and armpits within 3 weeks of starting, and it affected me a great deal more than I had anticipated - I looked like a scalded chicken. My eyelashes and eyebrows held on until a week after the treatment finished and then dropped off completely over a couple of days. Nothing says “cancer” like a baldy dome and red, streaming eyes. I couldn’t manage false eyelashes - they just fell off and looked like dead caterpillars so I gave up. I have a new appreciation for my returning eyelashes now😄. I used brown eyeliner or smudged eyeshadow until they started growing back and I no longer look like an extra in a sci-fi film. Good luck with your treatment - I’m sure you’ll rock whatever look you opt for😊
Hello Zaran, I learned how to draw my eyebrows before i loose all of them and used to draw them everyday to avoid the cancer look. I lost all of my eyelashes at the end of chemo and since i couldn’t apply mascara, I bought some very nice lipstick to draw focus on my lips instead of my eyes. Maybe something to consider
8 weeks after chemo and my lashes are back!! Eyebrows are coming…i left them once they vome out. As i had more concerns then how i looked…watery eyes was the doenside…
Go to one of these workshops, they are really good and you get some free stuff for you eyes…https://lookgoodfeelbetter.co.uk
Good luck…
I echo everthing that all the other lovely ladies have. My eyebrows and lashes just disappeared suddenly one day towards the end of treatment, but came back quite quickly once chemo finished. Didn’t bother me as much as i thought it would, follow the tips the others have given you. The plus side, no underarm hair 5 years on and hardly any leg hair. All the rest is back to normal. Dark reddish coloured nail varnish protected my nails.
Yes, I’ve read about the nail varnish thing. Have painted my nails black and read up on what remover to use (acetone free)
I start treatment tomorrow and i have to say… I’m absolutely terrified lol. I was ok. Now? Not so much lol
I was told that the nail polish thing doesn’t help you keep your nails and toenails because it actually dries them out more. I’ve used Polybalm throughout, twice a day, and the moisturising of them and the antibacterial element of Polybalm has helped more than anything. It’s your nail bed too that deteriorates during chemo from some of the drugs so nail hygiene and moisture is everything. I’ve obsessively used Polybalm and Margaret Baggs Medicinal Foot Balm as your skin can blister and peel with Docetaxel. If I don’t moisturise every night, I wake up with cracked skin on feet. EC didn’t really hurt me but Docetaxel is the devil to your skin. Can’t recommend Polybalm or the Margaret Baggs cream enough for those starting chemo. X
Hi there
Can I ask what the foot cream is called on the package ?
Can’t find it on the website and starting my journey 11 July (TC so incl Dox!)
Thx
Oh really!? Thats good to know!! Thank you!!
All the best for tomorrow x
I did 12 weeks of Paclitaxel with a cold cap and kept most of my hair, apart from a couple of bald patches above my ears. I lost most of my lashes and had very dry eyes so needed carbomer eye gel, eyebrows thinned in the middle but totally lost the tail. Since finishing chemo I have used Clinique eye lash serum and recently Aldi had a Lacura one very similar to the Revitalash. Lashes are looking good.
www.lookgoodfeelbetter.co.uk is a great charity and the hand and nail care and hair care are both brillinat to attend. You also receive a Goodybag for the hand and nail care. I used strengthener and dark purple nail varnish as well as moisturising my nails with a balm twice a day. My nails were badly rigged nd had a couple of infections (helped by Vicks Vaporub- recommended by LGFB course). 6 months on and they are slowly growing, very soft, have had to keep the, filled really short. I can no longer use strengthener due to allergies, was ok during chemo because of the steroids.
Jasmin from www.cancerhaircare.co.uk runs the hair courses, there is loads of good information on the website and help via phone or email. I was kindly send some eyebrow stencils and false eyelashes for people who have lost their lashes Eyelure C lash. They have extra piece to attach to your eyelid. Give them a call they may send you a free set!
As far as eyebrow tattoo, it would speak to your team and see if you have enough time to do this before your treatment starts as there is a risk of infection and that would, I assume, delay your start. I looked into it and most say you need two sessions and I didn’t have time to do this.
Have you joined the monthly chemo starters group, it’s a greats source of comaraderie.
Take care 
Wowza!! Thats a lot of info!! Thank you so much for taking the time to put that down!! Will definitely be following all of this up!!
Many thanks 
So didn’t do this !!! Had my usual shellac throughout with no problem x