How long will it take for my hair to grow back after radiation?

I have two brain tumors and I am going through radiation. I have lost a thick band of hair from one ear, along the back of my scalp to the other ear. How long will it take to grow back? How fast will it grow? And it there any product I could use to safely speed it up?

(btw I am 16 and healthy other than this.)

How long will it take for my hair to grow back after radiation?

The answer depends on the treatment:

chemotherapy, whole brain radiation, or tamoxifen.

If you had chemotherapy, here's a typical timetable:

Two to three weeks after chemotherapy ends: soft fuzz

One month after: real hair starts to grow at its normal rate

Two months after: an inch of hair

How long it takes to grow back a full head of hair (and pubic hair, lashes, and brows if you lost them too) varies from person to person.

Generally, the hair most likely to fall out is the hair that tends to grow back the fastest. The hair on the top of your head grows faster than your eyebrows or eyelashes.

Your new hair may be just like your old hair, or it may be thicker and curlier, or straighter, than your original hair. And your hair might grow back a different color. Women who dyed and processed their hair might not remember what their hair was like originally and may be surprised by the new natural color and texture. Eventually, your hair usually goes back to the way it used to be after the effect of chemotherapy on the hair follicle wears off.

If you lost your hair after whole brain radiation for brain metastases, it may take four to six months before even an inch of growth appears. Your new hair will probably be thinner than it was, and you may have a small bald spot on the top of your head. So you may want to hold on to the wig or other headgear you'd bought for special occasions.

If your hair started thinning from tamoxifen treatment, the loss usually levels off after the first year. But the thinning may last as long as you take the drug, which might be as long as five years. You can use Rogaine (chemical name: minoxidil) for tamoxifen-induced hair loss. It's safe and effective, but a messy daily chore閳ユ攣nd it's expensive.

Very, very rarely, permanent baldness occurs after many years of strong chemotherapy: Hair follicles get 閳ユ競urned out閳?and shut down, so there is no new growth. Remember, this situation is extremely rare. If you are one of the very, very few women who remain bald, you may mourn your hair for quite a while. But you can become an expert on what to do to make yourself feel attractive, and help other women deal with their new loss.

MAY GOD BLESS YOU :)

How long will it take for my hair to grow back after radiation?

Darlin', there's no way to accurately predict this...go by your normal preradiation hair growth rate and reduce it by 75%, just to be safe.

Thoughts are with you :)

How long will it take for my hair to grow back after radiation?

well I would say more than a year but it depends on how fast your hair grows I usually use head and shoulders but you can go online and search for the shampoo or ask a hair salonist

How long will it take for my hair to grow back after radiation?

i am sorry, i do not know the answer, but i just want to say i will pray for you tonight! hope you get better soon! %26lt;3

How long will it take for my hair to grow back after radiation?

Bless your heart for having to go through something so traumatic. I hope you are keeping your spirits high.

There isn't much you can do (other than prenatal vitamins) to speed hair growth. Sometimes, those don't even work for some women.

Until then, embrace the loss. When it grows back, dye it fun colors to celebrate the AMAZING achievement you have made.

Good luck to you!

How long will it take for my hair to grow back after radiation?

God Bless you sweetie! I will pray for you although im not sure about any products for your hair

How long will it take for my hair to grow back after radiation?

Well if you are entirely healthy, it shouldn't take too long. My Grandma when she had cancer, I think her hair had grown at least 4 inches in a few months. She died shortly after though because her cancer had not ceased, they had just discontinued radiation. Kind of depressing but meh... what can I do?

How long will it take for my hair to grow back after radiation?

it depends, some ppls hair grows at different speeds but on average a persons hair grows half an inch per month. but you could go to some place like sally's and they have special shampoos that they sell to help your hair grow back faster.

How long will it take for my hair to grow back after radiation?

your hair will usually grow back after your therapy is completed.

hope it helps!

:]

How long will it take for my hair to grow back after radiation?

It will start regrowing as soon as you end your radiation therapy. Then it will grow about 1/2" to 3/4" per month until it's all grown back. Just eat a balanced diet and take a multi-vitamin every day. If the radiation makes you not feel like eating then buy some Ensure and drink that instead - you've got to keep your strength up.

How long will it take for my hair to grow back after radiation?

Hi,

How much radiation have you received to each part of the brain and in what part of your brain were the tumors?

Depending upon the dosage, your hair may start to grow back within a few months, but that also depends if you are following radiaton with chemo that could also prevent it from coming back so quickly.

My daughter (dx medulloblastoma 6/98) received 5580 GY to the tumor bed on a strip across the back of her head between her ears. If my memory is correct, on the rest of her head she received 2340 Gy, and that hair grew back fairly quickly in the 6 week rest period before chemo.

During chemo it fell out again. As a 16 year old young lady it is can be particularly difficult for your self-esteem. You might want to buy a couple of wigs for the treatment period.

My daughter is 21 now and her hair has grown back in enough to cover the band of misisng hair on the back of her neck.

Rogaine could be a product to use later, but you need to discuss it with your oncologist and radiologist.

If I or my child was going through radiation currently I would try taking magnesium to promote neuronal plasticity and assist reducing the nausea effects. The form it can best be absorbed by the body would be through epsom salt baths (twice weekly) (Dose 2 cups dissolved in the bath)

I would also take curcumin and peperine to assist mitigate damage to healthy tissue. See the article below about how it helps with a chemo agent.

God bless and with kind regards

David Edge

Founder Yahoo parental support group Pediatric Brain Tumors

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/Ped...

1) J Agric Food Chem. 2007 Nov 15; [Epub ahead of print]

Effect of Curcumin on Inflammation and Oxidative Stress in Cisplatin-Induced Experimental Nephrotoxicity.Kuhad A, Pilkhwal S, Sharma S, Tirkey N, Chopra K.

dr_chopra_k@yahoo.com.

Nephrotoxicity is a major complication and a dose limiting factor for cisplatin therapy. Recent evidence suggests that inflammation and oxidative stress may contribute to the pathogenesis of cisplatin-induced acute renal failure. Curcumin is claimed to be a potent anti-inflammatory and antioxidant agent. The present study was performed to explore the effect of curcumin against cisplatin-induced experimental nephrotoxicity. Curcumin in the dosages of 15, 30, and 60 mg kg (-1) was administered 2 days before and 3 days after cisplatin administration. Renal injury was assessed by measuring serum creatinine, blood urea nitrogen, creatinine, urea clearance, and serum nitrite levels. Renal oxidative stress was assessed by determining renal malondialdehyde levels, reduced glutathione levels and enzymatic activities of superoxide dismutase and catalase. Systemic inflammation was assessed by tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) levels. A single dose of cisplatin resulted in marked inflammation (486% rise in TNF-alpha level) and oxidative stress and significantly deranged renal functions as well as renal morphology. The serum TNF-alpha level was markedly reduced in curcumin-treated rats. Curcumin treatment significantly and dose-dependently restored renal function, reduced lipid peroxidation, and enhanced the levels of reduced glutathione and activities of superoxide dismutase and catalase. The present study demonstrates that curcumin has a protective effect on cisplatin-induced experimental nephrotoxicity, and this effect is attributed to its direct anti-inflammatory and strong antioxidant profile. Hence, curcumin has a strong potential to be used as a therapeutic adjuvant in cisplatin nephrotoxicity.

PMID: 18001039 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]