I’ve been checking this discussion forum for a bit, now, since my diagnosis in sept 2007.
I have a question regarding hairloss on taxol, I 'm on a 12 weekly treatment with herceptin (and daily tablets of tykerb), my hair started falling off after 3-4 treatments and a week later I had it clippered. I’ve now had 9 treatments and my hair has definitely stopped coming out. It’s thinned out and if long wouldn’t be pretty at all, but I find this strange…I thought taxol would ahve more of a cumulative effect?
My I had 6 lots of chemo - 3 x FEC and 3 x Taxotere. My hair started coming out thick and fast after the first lot of FEC and continued until it had thinned immensely. I was left with the Friar Tuck effect and when I started Taxotere my hair was sparce but it never all fell out so I still have a fine covering. I think the FEC was much harsher on the hair follicles than the Taxotere. I did have other very unpleasant side effects of Taxotere though.
I have just had my 17th (of 18) weekly Taxol sessions and like you my hair started falling out after about the 3rd or 4th. And again like you, although it went very thin, I never went completely bald. The last month or so, I’ve noticed it is actually starting to grow back. I worried a bit initially about whether this meant the taxol wasn’t working so well but have just had a scan that shows my tumour has reduced a lot. So I’m taking it as a bonus!!
I had the same fear, what if it stopped working? But I had quite a large tumour to start with (6cm) and its less than half its original size now, so it must be working even if the hair hasn’t totally disappeared!
I see now that others have had similar experiences so these drugs must affect everyone in a very different way.
Hi webmum
My hair fell out three weeks after my first taxol treatment. I think it has different effects on different people. Good luck with the rest of your treatments.
Alison x
Hi All,
I started on FEC and lost all my hair, then switched to weekly taxol, my hair started growing back! it got to about half an inch all over then they gave me three big doses at three-weekly intervals to finish off, and most of my hair fell out again. It’s now very very thin all over and a bit thicker and tufty in the friar tuck places! (look a bit like crusty the clown but not as long!).The good news is, like Kay, my (secondary liver) tumour appears to have shrivelled up and died.
Wishing you all good results
love Jacquie
I lost all mines on FEC, but it then started coming back half way through rads, albeit sparsely. I then had Taxotere/Herceptin and was told to expect it all coming out again, but it didn’t happen. I did have a bald strip around the back though. I’ve had in uncovered since the last week of September now, it was like a silver crew cut at first. It’s now nearly back to the shape and length it was before and I think I will be ready for a cut after Christmas. It’s perfectly nice at the moment and I have even taken it for job interviews recently lol!
I’ve found the growth to be very slow on Herceptin and it took ages to come back in at the temples.
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