How long till your hair grew back (longest time?)

[feistyflora]

Hi Maire

You reckon?  Trouble is I quite enjoy being 'naughty' - it could become addictive!  What I'd like is one of those T-shirts that say "Normal People Scare Me" (cos they do!) I've done some naughty things in my time.  Once I was in one of those very 'posh' shops with my daughter and it had a juke box playing pop songs so I started dancing in front of it and my daughter kept hissing "stop it mum everyone's watching you" (so I just carried on) - such fun!!!! 

[Mindy63]

FeistyFlora you need to start a blog.so funny!

[catchpole]

Hi Feisty Flora, Haha so funny 

You made me laugh. I was never a frumpy person, ive always adored clothes and dress and always have some would say far too young for my age. Always been slim to, and amazingly put on half a stone after my op but thats fine i was a bit too skinny.  And naughty me when i was over 60 i grew my hair and died it red, as i was having a few grey streaks noy good in dark brown hair, Love red much more me.  So i was very unhappy that throught of losing it, luckily i didnt have to as idea of a grey tufts not appealing, and not being able to dye it for 6 months,  But before i always thought god people do think im mutton dressed as lamb, but now i couldnt care a toss, let em.  If most 60 plus women dont dress like me, tough, im not them im me.  So dress how you want Flora, sod em all, June

[feistyflora]

I used to be a very conservative, overweight, middle-of-the-road, Women's Institute jam-making sort of person whose clothes were, frankly, frumpy. I lost weight (due to chemo) so now I can dress trendy (cos I can).  I loathed being bald so I was thrilled to grow a bit of hair.  At first I combed it flat but my husband said I looked like Hitler!  “Fluff it up a bit” he suggested (so I did). “That’s better” he said.  My new ‘punk look’ seems to have excited quite a lot of attention recently. Believe me now I can truly sympathise with what ‘goths’ have to put up with for their ‘art’. I get all sorts of peculiar comments from weirdos who don’t ‘twig’ that my crazy hair is due to chemo – they seem to think that I am styling it this way because I want a bit of aggro! I feel most indignant, in fact I am so fed-up that I think I might go the whole hog, dye my hair fluorescent blue, wear thick black eye-liner, a leather collar around my neck with studs and spikes in, a frayed denim mini-skirt, a pair of fishnet tights (with holes strategically ripped in them of course) and finish it all off with a few controversial fake ‘tattoos’ on my knuckles. Honestly I don’t know whether to laugh or cry! (Well laugh, obviously).

[Abittoosquashy]

Hi Helm. I'm curious to know how you got on with your hair. I finished FEC-T in jan. My hair grew through Docytaxol then fell out 4 weeks after chemo. Still virtually no hair anywhere. Has yours continued to improve? I'm trying to get my head around the idea that I may be like this forever.

[jellytot83]

Hi Helm,
My blogpost might help you, it's a 2 year post chemo hair diary, lots of photos tracking the growth:
Lots of Love
Jelly x

[Patriciaann]

try Nioxin shampoo number 4,for chemically treated hair??? yes that is funny but having hair not grown back is not.
Amazon have it ,,,sold by Hair Angels,also biotin supplement I am told.

[Jomar]

I was very lucky as I had an absolute mane of hair and I used the cold cap during my 6 months of chemo. I had my hair cut to shoulder length the day before my first treatment so the hairloss wouldnt be so frightening.  I lost 50% probably but it was even so not noticable to others. For me is was very noticible.  Cold cap was fine due to my thick hair but the last treatment was unbearable as I'd lost so much and i dont think i would have been able to continue with it.  Its a year on and I now have two hairdo's in one. about two inches of regrowth and my below shoulder length.  keep it tied back or pinned up as it looks absolutely ridiculous but there is no way im having any cut, every hair is valuable.  the shorter hair makes the longer hair stick out and I think in 6 months time I should probably have some kind of strange mullet going on.  I would wear a hat if it werent for the tamoxifen sweats!

Probably not much help in answering any questions but thought it might make you laugh.  I have been taking some herbal pills from switzerland called revalid or something. Supposed to take 2  3 x a day but they are expensice so I only take 2 once a day but i think they have helped.  I try not to wash it too often and avoid harsh shampoos.  

Definitely try the nioxin if possible I saw something on tv about scalp microdermabrasion to unblock the folicles from sebum. that could really make a difference.

Im sure your hair will get back to normal but it all takes time for the body to settle down after being ravaged by chemicals.  

xx

[Mel66]

After some amount of googling to try and find a cheap, but effective, product to aid hair regrowth I went out and bought a bottle of organic castor oil yesterday and am currently sitting here with it massaged into my scalp, eyelashes and eyebrows. Evidence abounds on t'interweb for its effectiveness and many people seem to swear by it so I'm prepared to give it a go.

I just put it on my eyelashes and eyebrows before I went to bed last night then smeared the remaining few drops on my fingers over my face and I can certainly vouch for it as a moisturiser. My skin feels great this morning whereas it's been horrible, dry and flaky since chemo.

I too have the male pattern baldness look with the top and front of my head very sparce compared to the sides and back. Watch this space... could good old fashioned castor oil be the secret...?

[nicky08]

Hi helm
I see that your hair is growing back but not that thickly? I have had chemo twice now as I have secondaries and had not problems the first time around. The second time I am waiting to see as I finished in December and it's growing back but not long enough to tell how it will be. The first time around I also used Nioxin as my hairdresser recommended it. Whether it worked or not I don't know. However, whilst on another treatment last year my hair started thinning and coming out quite noticeably so I bought Nioxin again and it did seem to help,my hair certainly stopped coming out! So I'm using the rest of the product that I had left as a help to getting my hair to grow back thickly this time. It may be worth buying some. You can get a starter kit from amazon which has shampoo, conditioner and scalp treatment and although it seems expensive you use such a small amount each time it will last for ages. They do 4 different 'systems' I think depending on your hair problem so you need to work out which is the one for non coloured hair that is thin. Hope this helps.
Nicky x

[Christina0]

hiya

I guess it depends on the individual? I am  54 years old and  I had 3FEC then  a mastectomy, then 3 Docetaxel, I finished chemotherapy treatment at the end of October 2014, I then the 15 radiotherapy treatments finished on 23rd December.

My hair is now about an inch and a half on top, but I had what I can only describe as male pattern baldness at the front/sides.  I have always had very thick curly hair, but it has grown in what I can only describe as baby hair, very very soft but still curly.  I have lost almost all colour in my hair also, and it is growing in silver/grey with brown patches(my natural colour).

A hairdressing friend recommended Nioxin - its a treatment shampoo which encourages healthy hair growth at the roots. If you think about it, our bodies have fairly taken a battering through treatment.  I have used the Nioxin Shampoo, Nioxin Conditioner, Nioxin Treatment Spray and Nioxin finishing Spray, and it DEFINATELY helped with hair growth at the front / sides.

I have just spoken with my hairdresser becasue although still very short at the sides and back, it is curling outwards and looks messy, so she is going to give me a 'little trim' for now, and she is going to check the texture just to see how it will take on any hair dye. 

Now, the GOOD part is - becasue most of mines has come in silver/grey - its a blank canvas, just waiting for me to decide whichever colour I wish 🙂

Hope this helps, but just remember, you are individual and your body has been through so much.  I still sometimes wear hats / scarves just because I like them.

Good luck hun, stay healthy xxxx

[SML1903]

Hi. I finished FEC-T at the end of July 2014 and my hair didn't start to grow back for a few months after and even now nearly 7 months later it is still only about 1/2 an inch. I know some ladies said their hair started growing again before they had finished their chemo. I am quite disapointed at how slowly my hair is growing and thought by now I would be able to leave my wig off when I go out, I dont wear it at home. It is quite thick at the back but thin on top and sides and very grey. I am going to Center Parcs over the easter holidays and was hoping not to wear my wig but not sure I will be able to. I would be happy with a short style if my hair was growing more evenly. I started on Anastrozole in November and this can effect your hair and have wondered if this is so with mine. I have also noticed that not all my body hair has grown back yet, not that I am worried about that. I take muti vitimins for hair, skin and nails which seem to help my nails as I noticed they got worse when I ran out of them ( I lost all but 4 because of the chemo ) and they are getting better now although still quite weak so hopefully they are helping my hair as well. 

Good luck with your hair and I hope by the summer you will be able to go out without your scarf with confidence. 

[Mindy63]

My hair grew very very slowly after chemo. I'm sure taking Tamoxifen has an effect as I noticed my nails become more flaky-I've always had very fast growing finger nails (think there's a relation with hair growth)

I took a Tamoxifen break and my hair grew rapidly as did my nails-not sure if you're on this tablet.

If you private message me I can send you pics of my hair growth as I kept a record.

[Butterfly318]

Evening Ladies.

I finished Fec T in February 2013.  My hair started to grow back july august 2013 but it was bright white tight curls.  Similar to a Brillo Pad and was like this for at least 12 months so had to keep it really short and straightened with tiny GHD's..  The texture has now improved and is about 5/6" long.  So it did take a long time for it to get back to anything like normal.  I did think FAST products were helpful though. 

Take Care    Gilly x

[Annie62]

Hi Helm,

I finished chemo in October 2013 and my hair is only now what I consider to be a reasonable length.  It only started growing back around January last year, so it's taken over a year.  It's still nowhere near all one length, but one bonus is that it's grown back wavy!

I did use Grow Gorgeous from Boots for a while, and tried Fast shampoo and conditioner, but neither made any noticeable difference to how quickly my hair grew, although they probably helped its condition.

Don't give up hope, the fact that it's actually growing is a good sign!

Annie

[Janet_BCC]

Hi Helm,

I'm sorry you haven't had any replies to your post yet.  I wondered if more people might see if you also posted in the Chemotherapy or Chemotherapy monthly threads section.

It might also be helpful to talk to one of our Helpline staff.  (Opening times are 9-5 on weekdays and 10-2 on Saturdays.  0808 800 6000)

Very best wishes

Janet

BCC Moderator

[Helm]

Hi, I'd like to know how long it took for your hair to grow back: I've read many times on the forums and elsewhere that some women have their hair grow back within a few months of finishing chemo. However, I only have about 50% coverage of hair after over 12 months since finishing chemo. The hair that's there is growing (I have about 2-3 inches) but because it's not all there it looks very thin on my scalp (you can see alot of my scalp so I don't ever go out without a scarf on).

Now I've started to believe that because the rest of it hasn't come back then it's not likely to - but I'd love for someone to say 'don't worry there's still a chance it'll all be back, because it took my hair 1/2/years/longer...'

So has anyone out there been in a similar situation and found that it did eventually all grow back as normal even though it took over a year to do so? Any feedback would be really appreciated.