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Chemotherapy refers to treatment of disease by chemicals that kill cells, specifically those of micro-organisms or cancer. In popular usage, it will usually refer to antineoplastic drugs used to treat cancer or the combination of these drugs into a cytotoxic standardized treatment regimen.
Cancer chemotherapy acts by killing cells that divide rapidly, one of the main properties of cancer cells.
Possible Cancer Chemotherapy Side Effects
Although cancer chemotherapy is given to kill cancer cells, it also can damage normal cells. The normal cells most likely to be damaged are those that divide rapidly:
- bone marrow/blood cells
- cells of hair follicles
- cells lining the digestive tract
- cells lining the reproductive tract
Damage to these cells accounts for many of the side effects of chemotherapy drugs. Side effects are different for each chemotherapy drug, and they also differ based on the dose, the route the drug is given, and how the drug affects you individually.
Chemotherapy Hair LossHair loss (alopecia) due to cancer chemotherapy is one of the most distressing side effects of chemo treatments.
Chemotherapy may cause hair loss all over your body — not just on your scalp. Sometimes your eyelash, eyebrow, armpit, pubic and other body hair also falls out. Some chemotherapy drugs are more likely than others to cause hair loss, and different doses can cause anything from a mere thinning to complete baldness.
In many cases cancer chemotherapy hair loss is temporary. You can expect to regrow a full head of hair six months to a year after your chemotherapy treatment ends, though your hair may temporarily be a different shade or texture.
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