post chemo FACIAL hair

dibae66
dibae66 Member Posts: 1
in Breast Cancer #1
Yikes! Two months after chemo I've got a nice head of hair coming in, but also white fuzzy facial hair. I'm only 45! Too young for this. I read that it will go away. I hope so, coz I don't want to start shaving.

Comments

  • MAJW
    MAJW Member Posts: 2,510 Member
    #2
    It will...
    It will eventually go way....but I hated it and my oncologist's nurse said most women complained about this...her advice, shave it off if it bothers you, it won't return as "stubble"....I shaved it and it didn't come back...

    Hugs, Nancy
  • epark
    epark Member Posts: 339
    #3
    MAJW said:

    It will...
    It will eventually go way....but I hated it and my oncologist's nurse said most women complained about this...her advice, shave it off if it bothers you, it won't return as "stubble"....I shaved it and it didn't come back...

    Hugs, Nancy

    I'm 4 mo post chemo and i
    I'm 4 mo post chemo and i also have facial peach fuzz ...like nancy said I think I am going to just shave it...

    Eva
  • gee-gee
    gee-gee Member Posts: 2
    #4
    epark said:

    I'm 4 mo post chemo and i
    I'm 4 mo post chemo and i also have facial peach fuzz ...like nancy said I think I am going to just shave it...

    Eva

    Yikes is right. My facial
    Yikes is right. My facial peach fuzz came back black. I thought i would get a side job as the bearded lady at the circus, LOL. I did shave it and so far so good. No more facial hair. It has been about one month since shaving.
  • mariam_11_09
    mariam_11_09 Member Posts: 691 Member
    #5
    I had soft white fuzzy hair
    I had soft white fuzzy hair on my forehead and cheeks. It showed up towards the end of chemo. I understood that it was mostly to do with the steroids (dexamethasone). It was creepy to have no hair on my head and then this 'man' hair. I felt like a neanderthal! Anyway I did take once of those 'epilady' hair remover and removed it all. It did eventually stop growing. A year and a half later I don't have any.
  • camul
    camul Member Posts: 2,537
    #6
    This is so funny
    I have been plucking all week and last night I sent my son to get some nair and I waxed it off. Some of the hairs were close to an inch long from the side burns down along the jaw line. I even had some long ones on the middle of my forehead. I will have to do it one more time because I noticed this morning that I missed a strip under my chin and on both of my cheek bones. Funny, I am still on chemo, but with the Navelbine my hair on my head is growing, slowly but growing. I still have minimal eye lashes and just a few eyebrows!

    So where in the world did all of this facial hair come from... I was turning into a hairy faced woman. (laughing, but so glad someone posted this!) I too am on dexamethazone weekly for nausea!
  • cinnamonsmile
    cinnamonsmile Member Posts: 1,187 Member
    #7
    I started growing a
    I started growing a moustache in my 30's and when I turned 40 or late 30s, I started to get chin hairs. This is all coming naturally with the reduction of estrogen. It has been getting worse. I have lots of gray hair and now get gray facial hair in addition to the black hairs. All I can do is pluck and shave with my hubby's electric razor.
  • jne66
    jne66 Member Posts: 26
    #8
    Chin hair
    Thanks for posting this! I'm getting pure white chin hair. I feel like Santa Claus least I know I'm not alone
  • mamolady
    mamolady Member Posts: 796 Member
    #9
    It goes away pretty quickly!
    It goes away pretty quickly! I was mortified too but at least it was short lived!

    Cindy

    as far as the estrogen, I have no ovaries and am on arimidex, no extra facial hair yet and it's been since july 2011.
  • cinnamonsmile
    cinnamonsmile Member Posts: 1,187 Member
    #10
    mamolady said:

    It goes away pretty quickly!
    It goes away pretty quickly! I was mortified too but at least it was short lived!

    Cindy

    as far as the estrogen, I have no ovaries and am on arimidex, no extra facial hair yet and it's been since july 2011.

    I had my ovaries removed in
    I had my ovaries removed in 11/11. I have noticed my facial hair is even worse. I guess you are one of the lucky few that don't have that side effect.

    The key hormone that controls the type of hair on your face is dihydrotestosterone (DHT). Higher DHT levels cause your facial hair to convert from vellus to terminal hair production.

    During reproductive years, the higher relative levels of estrogen to testosterone usually keep production of DHT low. However, as menopause approaches and estrogen levels drop, there’s an increase of DHT in the hair follicle (details below). It’s at this point many women begin to see frustrating ‘beard-like’ hairs in places they’ve never seen them before—chin, jaw line, cheeks, and even the forehead.

    Cant remember where I got that from..sorry
  • VickiSam
    VickiSam Member Posts: 9,079 Member
    #11
    cinnamonsmile said:

    I had my ovaries removed in
    I had my ovaries removed in 11/11. I have noticed my facial hair is even worse. I guess you are one of the lucky few that don't have that side effect.

    The key hormone that controls the type of hair on your face is dihydrotestosterone (DHT). Higher DHT levels cause your facial hair to convert from vellus to terminal hair production.

    During reproductive years, the higher relative levels of estrogen to testosterone usually keep production of DHT low. However, as menopause approaches and estrogen levels drop, there’s an increase of DHT in the hair follicle (details below). It’s at this point many women begin to see frustrating ‘beard-like’ hairs in places they’ve never seen them before—chin, jaw line, cheeks, and even the forehead.

    Cant remember where I got that from..sorry

    Yes, been there .. however, I did have my
    excess facial hair 'waxed' off. I did not use the shave approach.

    Hair .. Hair .. Hair everywhere - that mustache had to go!

    Strength, Courage and Hope for a CURE.

    Vicki Sam
  • cinnamonsmile
    cinnamonsmile Member Posts: 1,187 Member
    #12
    VickiSam said:

    Yes, been there .. however, I did have my
    excess facial hair 'waxed' off. I did not use the shave approach.

    Hair .. Hair .. Hair everywhere - that mustache had to go!

    Strength, Courage and Hope for a CURE.

    Vicki Sam

    I did learn while googling
    I did learn while googling that plucking is not the way to go. It could actually stimulate the follicles to produce more hairs!!
  • desertgirl947
    desertgirl947 Member Posts: 653 Member
    #13
    mamolady said:

    It goes away pretty quickly!
    It goes away pretty quickly! I was mortified too but at least it was short lived!

    Cindy

    as far as the estrogen, I have no ovaries and am on arimidex, no extra facial hair yet and it's been since july 2011.

    So
    So, how long is short-lived? I am trying to get a sense of time it takes for this challenge to disappear.
  • mollyz
    mollyz Member Posts: 756 Member
    #14
    desertgirl947 said:

    So
    So, how long is short-lived? I am trying to get a sense of time it takes for this challenge to disappear.

    Still here!!!
    I've been on aromasin for about a year or two not sure now but anyhow my hair comes back and if i know im going to be out side in the sunshine im shaving lol.~~MollyZ~~

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