Fec-t chemo - at what point does your hair fall out?

[Sarahd75]

Hi,

For people that have already gone through it does your leg hair fall out? My head hair and shall we s private parts falling out fast but not my legs , eye brows or armpits. Do they fall out at all?

Many thanks x

[Snoozysuz]

I'm so glad I read this post, I thought I was doing well 2 weeks after FEC with no signs of hair falling out. Im all set to go a weeks holiday tomo and decided not to take the wig, until I read that a lot of people start losing hair on day 15. Right enough, yesterday, my day 15 it started coming out. Today it's falling out everywhere, and not just from my head! My hairdresser is on her way to get rid of the rest. So wiggly will be coming on holiday. You think you've prepared yourself for it, but it is so upsetting. At least it was an original excuse to not go to work. Luckily my boss very understanding. Good luck to everyone, try to look for the positives. My little girl has already decided we're going as Roald Dahl The Witches for Halloween. If she's happy, I'm happy X

[Steph03]

Hi all, I started my first cycle of FEC on 22 Sept and cold capped - and it hasn't worked. On days 14-15, I had a little sensation of pins and needles in my head. Day 18 (yesterday), it really started to fall out, and literally this morning I combed it out. By coincidence I collected my wig today, and the salon shaved off the tiny bit of hair that was left. I don't feel as bad as I thought I would, and will now just embrace my wig knowing this is all a short term crap time for a long term gain. 🙂

[shirleyw]

My partner doesn`t like it either i think for him it`s the visible sign of cancer that scares him but it`s you that`s fighting this not him and as i have been told you have to be selfish and do what`s right for you not them. 

If i wasn`t laughing and joking about it and looked at his face all the time i would feel pig sick but as far as i am concerned in this instance i and what i feel over rules any of his opinions.

[shirleyw]

Hi all i started Fec on the 12th Sept  my hair started falling out on the 16th day but not in chunks just heavy shedding, my daughter reckons she has enough on her car seat to make a wig lol, My daughter then cut it short and the shedding reduced  i still have hair even though its very thin eyebrows and eyelashes still in tact and all other body hair i do realise no two people are the same but just laugh through it, i am not going to let this get me down it`s a bit of hair and not as important as living.

[lisad]

Thanks Sue & Flopsy, especially regarding having it shaved off.  I don't think it will last ntil next Wednesday, but may just get my hairdressers to cut (not shaved) it really short. 

I went to Look Good Feeeling Better today and as my hair is such a mess I wore a cap and put a printed  scarf around it  my first attempt and I got quite a few comments how nice it looked and how did I do it, so not all bad.

My partner did not say anything, asked what he thought and no comment - guess he is finding it harder to deal with than I thought. 

[Sue H-S]

Hi lisad

sorry to read that you you are having these challenges - unfortunately - it is part of the stuff we have to face.

It may not be wise now to have your hair shaved off, as you have already started chemo.

Should your scalp be 'knicked' it could cause an infection, which is not very desireable, as your immune system is now compromised. It may be distressing, but perhaps wait till week 2 past 2nd chemo, as this will be likely the point, where nearly all of your hair may have gone. It there are still strands left, perhaps talk to a nice friendly hairdresser - let them know your challenges - and perhaps they can cut any unsightly strands short, to make it look more acceptable, until they are gone, too.

Hugs

Sue xx 

[Flopsy]

Really sorry to hear about your hair Lisa.

Mine matted as well. After starting chemo I was so sick and weak I couldn't sit up to brush my hair. I lost all of the normal oils to my skin and I think that contributed to the severe matting. My hair was very fine and I had lots if it.

When I eventually washed it I couldn't get a wetbrush or a comb through it even with heavy conditioner. Hair Oil made no difference.

Although I used the cold cap it was the sudden dry frizziness that added to the matting which lost me some of my hair.  The hair was still connected to my scalp but hard and frizzed and knotted. I had to cut them out in the end and they were solid. 

Sorry you won't last until the 12th. It's such an awful part of chemo.

[lisad]

I am due to have my 2nd session on Wednesday.

Well I washed my hair today having not washed it since Friday and it came out in bucket loads.  After washing it was so matted I ask my other half just to cut the lumps out.

So today I mainly sporting a semi hair look! - As I have my port cath op last this afternoon, no point in wearing anything on my head, but from tomorrow I will have to get my hair covered as it's a mess .

Scheduled to have my hair shaved off on the 12th - but at this rate it will be long gone before then

[Terriannes90]

Hello All

I'm from the June chemo thread and have just finished fec - t. My hair started coming out in handfuls on day 17 of first chemo. I had long thick hair & was more upset loosing my hair than my boob!!!! But I decided I was in charge!! So before 1st chemo I had my hair cut short & bought a wig. I got the wig (Suzis in lakeside - absolutely fantastic experience they were brilliant & very reasonably priced) before cutting my hair so it was similar then wore it soon as it was cut short. I got my sister to shave it all off on day 13. The t part of chemo has made me totally bald including eyebrows & eyelashes now BUT I love my wig, I get lots of comments about my nice hair!! At first it was a bit daunting as I thought everyone would know it's a wig but, trust me, they don't 😀. So when I get ready it's quick shower, wash bald head & put on ready styled wig - saves so much time!!! As for eyebrows. I pencil them on & use false eyelashes which, once you can put them on properly, are really good too.

Hope my experience helps ❤️

Terri xx

[blueash]

I got my wig from here:

http://hairtoware.co.uk/ They have the NHS contract for many hospitals in the South. They will know if you have to pay (I did not pay anything) towards it according to which Trust you come under.

[Vintage]

Hi
I'm on fec-T X6. Have done 2 so far.
I found my hair started to fall slightly week 3 of first chemo. My folicals became sore to touch. So had long thick hair cut to short style. Then by end of week 4 had to use clippers to a mark 2. As it was coming out in clumps and driving me mad.
I wear my wig going out and about and am getting used to it . (Bit like getting used to wearing first bra, eventually u don't notice it there). X

[Croudy crew 06]

I am doing the brave the shave before my 2nd chemo(1st one in the morning ) I wanted my kids to see a positive side to this and shield both them and me from it coming out in clumps.
I have a date of 18.10 and hoping my hair lasts til then now as reading your posts it could be sooner. I may move date forward a week ? Julie x

[lisad]

I pick up my wig yesterday and my other half thought it look better than my own hair - how cheeky was that.

My hair is definitely getting thinner plan to hold on to until the 12th when I have an apt with my hairdresser, not sure if it will last until then 2nd chemo session on the 5th.

[Sarah04]

I've ended up going for a synthetic . I tried a human one on and my head is quite small. I ended up looking like Miss Piggy! X

[Hels_P]

Thanks Sarah, will do some research down here - have been told by a friend to go for a human/synthetic mix as all human requires lots of styling so that's a definite no from me!

[Sarah04]

Hi Hels_p

With regards to ordering the wigs, it shouldn't take long at all. I went on the Wed and they phoned me the next day to say they had arrived. I'm going back today to try them again and decide. I think most shops can get them in within a few days. I'm slightly different as I'm cold capping so the wig will be a back up.
I can't help with shops local to you though as I'm up north, sorry X

[Hels_P]

Hi,

I am due to have my first lot of FEC on Saturday in Oxford and am panicing about my hair loss.  Does anyone know how long it takes to have a wig sorted as I cant have my kids see me without hair and also with my hair falling out so I am planning to have it shaved and then wear the wig from the start??  Has anyone else done this??  Can anyone recommend a good wig shop in the south of england, I am happy to travel anywhere xx

[Treeze]

11 days from first chemo and mine hasnt started yet.it has gone really dry though and its very short to begin with.to compensate my skin has gone really greasy and broken out in spots! I look great!:)

[Nanna]

Hi, I am 7 days from first treatment with Taxol & Herceptin. Anyone get itchy in hands, head, and feet? Benadryl helps. Thrush from steroids. Seems each day ring new trials.

[helly18]

Really useful post as I was wondering  about this as having 1st fec t Wednesday.   Had an appointment to look at wigs todsy, took my mum with me  and and we have never laughed so much in ages  (sounds a bit odd I know!) In fact at one point the lady starting patting my shoulder as i think she thought I was upset but I was crying laughing 😂. Really happy with final choice.

[maureen1968]

Hi im on day 8 after first fec chemo and im dreading me hair falling out did you wear a wig or a bandana xxx

[maetjo]

I had My first chemo on 16th November, I did use the cold cap, dreadingmy hair falling out, will I get the same head pain do you think?, think its the unknown that'sthe worse.

[Babypink]

I had my first FEC on Friday and tried the cold cap. I hope it works for me but if I do get still clumps coming out at least I can say I tried and it will just have to come off. I'm not sure how I will deal with it to be fair

[Sunset Song]

Great to hear some humour at this time :). Woke up at 5.30am due to scalp pain and found myself reading your comments about birds nests and one inch grey hair and found myself smiling....thank you x.

[Boodles]

Hi, mine started coming out before my 2nd chemo. I didnt cold cap, but i got it cut like a pixie cut so it wasnt so dramatic when it came out. I didnt shave at all as i felt that was too harsh and because it was short it wasnt too noticable as it came out a bit slower when it was short xxx

[Rocky Ros]

Did you carry on using cold cap after the first two cycles and after your hair came out?
I've just had second cycle of FEC. Not much hairloss after first but coming out in hands now. Daren't wash it as I feel it will all go!
Just debating whether to continue with cold cap or not.

[Guest user]

I had my head shaved the day before my second round of FEC. I had really thick hair and it was coming out in handfuls so I had it cut to about an inch on the sat before 2nd round. I went 'naked' in the september when we had a hot spell. Head was a little tender but didnt last long. That will be 2 years ago in July.
Jane xxx

[Morwenna]

It's a funny thing, but I have had four x three week cycles of AC chemo (not FEC) and I still have a lot of hair left!

I did lose it rapidly from about day 15 of my first cycle, and then I shaved what was left, but to my surprise I have had to keep shaving! I have to say the sides are pretty near bald, but it is quite thick at the top, and still there at the back. I am thinking of growing a Mohawk!! 😉

If I had been using a cold cap, I probably would be congratulating myself. As it is, I am interested to see what twelve, weekly, doses of Paclitaxel (Taxol) is going to do to what is left,..... and my thinning eyebrows and lashes too!

[Guest user]

Hi there, I am on day 15 from my first chemo and this morning noticed it coming out in chunks! Having said that, I am on dexataxol not a FEC. I am to star start FEC, hoe did you find it, whahave your you experienced?

[Guest user]

Hi JLR
i too am at day 16 an as off 2day my hair has started 2 fall out. cant bloody touch it an i come away with a clump of hair. Went to the gym an now im sitting scared stiff il get in the shower an all my hair will go down the drain.lol Iv already had my long hair cut to help with the process but its still the strangest feeling. I hav 2 say thanks for putting up your post cause it did prepare me. I thought as my hair was ok this long following my chemo i would b ok till my second round. so reading that it could happen, meant it wasnt such a shock wen it happened if u no what i mean. lol
anyway good luck but it sounds like you mite b lucky an hold on to your hair a bit longer my scalp has been tender from the first couple of days after my first treatment.
xxxx Monicaxxxx.

[Guest user]

Hi JLR,
MYN CAME OUT 2 WEEKS AFTE FIRST CHEMO, WAS CURLING MY HAIR ONE DAY AND THE WHOLE CURL JUST CAME OUT WITH TONGS, NEXT DAY WOKE UP WITH LOTS ON PILLOW, MY DAUGTER, SISTER AND HUSBAND WAS WITH ME AND IT TOOK ABOUT 2HOURS FOR ME TO START CUTING, MY DAUGHTER HELPED ME , AND MY HUSBAND SHAVED IN AT TH END, BUT WE AL HAD A GLASS OF WINE TO SAY GODBYE TO MY LOCKS,
GOOD LUCK XXXXX

[amd66]

Jlr, same as everyone else, yep it does start with sore scalp, feels like its tight in a ponytail hurts in the wind. mine started just before the 2nd session and i had wispy bits everywhere but very very thin. i put up with that until 2months or so and then clippered it all. its now soft and very dark, with grey! but changes each week. x good luck x

[Jlr]

Thank you everyone, I have got up this morning (day 16) and my scalp around the crown area is really sore to the touch so I wonder if this is the start of it eeeek! Currently all still there but I guess I had better be prepared now!

[Guest user]

Hi Jlr - I'm having my second EC this Friday - after a lot of root 'sensitivity' mine started falling out on day 15.... by day 20 (today) it was such a mess, hair everywhere, that I shaved it off (myself.....not an easy task! - though OH did finish it off for me when he came home from work! ). It is a relief in an sense as it is one less thing to worry about. I couldn't be bothered with cold cap and from what I gathered it is a pain with not necessarily a lot of gain. Good luck with the next lot. x

[mandyj]

I was told at my first dose that my hair would be gone for the second dose of fec...and it was. About 2 weeks after first dose i was chatting on the phone twirling my hair in my fingers and noticed it coming out. After that i could pull it out in clumps. My little boy quite enjoyed helping me and making what looked like birds nests out of it. Got very sore and painful so got it shaved off. I finished chemo at the end of november and now have 1/2inch of grey hair!! Its sooo soft and everyone says it makes me look 'distinguished'. If you had told me a year ago that i would happily go around with hair this short and grey i would have thought you had gone mad! But, after being bald you realise its just hair, there are more important things and you are so thankful that your body has remembered to grow it back again.
Good luck hun
mandyj.xx

[Guest user]

I was advised against the cold cap, as my oncologist said it would provide stray cancer cells with somewhere to hide. My hair started hurting quite soon after FEC 1 and fell out by day 10.

[poemsgalore]

My scalp began to get very itchy by day 5, then sore, and by day nine was falling out all over the place. I could take hold of a clump, and it would come away easily. By day 12 I had a huge bald patch over the front and around the crown, so OH shaved it off. Day 14, Just look at my picture, that was taken about then!!

[Mindy63]

I wonder if it depends on the dose you get. Mine fell out all at once on about day 19...I think. I'm now almost 6 weeks past last chemo and am starting to get tiny stubble which actually feels quite nice. I am having recurring dreams that I have a full head of hair- so looking in the mirror and seing a baldy is still quite odd.

[Jlr]

Thank you everyone, it seems like everything else associated with chemo etc that everyone is different. Guess I will just have to wit and see. I had not heard of cold capping nobody at my hospital has mentioned it either, but as I hate being cold I prob would not have bothered anyway xx

[Gill_567]

Mine started thinning a lot on day 5 of second FEC-T cycle. Quickly got worse. Shaved off what was left on day 12 (so 33 days after starting chemo) as I couldn't stand the mess any more. Everyone seems to be slightly different. Good luck.

[granny_p]

Mine also started to fall out last Thurs 14 days after first Chemo session,got worse over the weekend itching and sore scalp son came round last night and gave me a number 2 wish id done it earlier would have saved the hair mess everywhere...

[Guest user]

Mine started falling out day 15 of first FEC, after about 5 days it was noticably thinner, sore and really annoying me, so I took it down to a number 1 with the clippers. The majority of the remaining stubble had gone within a few days from then.

[spookymoo]

Hi Jlr. Everyone is different and it also depends on the condition of your hair. Are you cold-capping? I had long thick brown hair and I used the cold-cap for the first two sessions of FEC-T. The first session was fine - nothing happened. Second session - about 4 days after session I had terrible pain in my head - like it was being pulled out by the roots - which is the hair follicles dying! By day 7 it was coming out in clumps so I took control and shaved it all off and felt much better for it! I finished my Tax in December and my hair is growing back nicely (although grey - gggrrr!!) and is soft and silky. I was really really worried about losing my hair. But its not the be all and end all. The most important thing is zapping the cancer and I am glad I had the chemo for that reason. There are many helpful threads on here re: chemo. I hope the other sessions go ok for you and you have minimal SE's. Hugs Em x

[Guest user]

Hi, Mine started with a few strands day 15 by day 18 I got shaved off due to how quick it was coming out. I believe most people loose it or are well on the way by the time they have their second FEC. Ofc you could be one of the few luckly ones 🙂

[Jlr]

Hi I had my first session of Fec-t chemo 15 days ago, luckily SE have been minimal. But I am wondering when to expect the dreaded hair loss? Currently it's showing no signs at all of thinning or anything so wonder if is the same for everyone or if it differs person to person xx