My vanity is showing - any thoughts on coloring hair while on chemo?

KierstenRx said:

Hair issues!!!
The hair color issue is so close to my heart. I decided not to color my hair and had it matched close to my natural color before starting chemo. I was also very happy to keep my hair, but it thinned dramatically during treatment (folfox and avastin) and I cut it quite short. My hair was quite dry, but if I had to do all over again I probably would have put a few highlights in just to jazz things up a bit.

Now over two years after diagnosis I have the most amazing hair ever!!! My hair was always very fine and thin, but it is so thick (for me) and healthy now. I am actually growing it out past my shoulders for the first time in my life. I get compliments on it all the time. It is a few shades darker now (was a blonde until my early 20's) and I keep it pretty natural with highlights. Talk to your hairstylist to see if there is something fairly mild she can use. My oncologist never told me I couldn't color my hair, but I didn't want to risk further damage to it.

Kiersten

msccolon said:

ah, you'd think we would just not care!
But of course, we DO care! I lost my hair due to FOLFIRI as well, and when it grew back in I just said what the heck! It's hair! But I finally decided to color and was very glad. The first coloring didn't come out quite as expected, and I remember that happening the first time I colored after chemo the last time; probably residual chemo. But, I just waited a few days and colored again with no problems. It made my hair more glossy not to mention it wasn't "grey" anymore! I find that most of my regrowth now comes in white! I color from the store, too, so you don't have to go to a professional colorist for good results! I read somewhere that coloring can cause the new growth to fall out but that's hogwash from what I can tell! I haven't found a SINGLE person who colored with bad results!
mary

CherylHutch said:

Your mileage may vary
I was also told not to colour my hair because the chemicals of the hair colour, combined with the chemo (which does get into the hair shaft) can cause a bad reaction such as breakage, drying, damaging, frizz... your basic "OMG, what happened to my hair???"

So, I bit the bullet and didn't colour my hair for the 7 months of the 8 months I was on chemo. After the first 8 weeks, I was climbing the walls! I had never let my roots get that long, hence I really had no idea what my "natural" colour was... what a shock to find out!! LOL!! It was a total mousey brown/blond/beige with two huge gray streaks in the middle of my head going from the middle part straight down, not to mention gray at the sides. I would look at this every morning as I tried to compensate by throwing some makeup on. All that did was make me look like someone who only half attempted to make herself look civilized. I totally looked like one of those women who you think to yourself, "Poor gal! If she'd only throw some colour in her hair she wouldn't look like such a matronly bag lady!!"

I tried to tell myself that if the worst of the treatments was I'd look like a bag lady for the length of the treatments, then I'm not doing so bad and what a pleasant surprise I will be when it's all over and I can start colouring my hair again But, I honestly was climbing the walls every time I saw myself in the mirror!!

A friend of mine, who is a hairstylist, told me I should go and talk to an Aveda hair colourist and see what he/she would have to say and if there's anything they can suggest. Aveda is a product that is 98% chemical free and made from natural plant products. It is NOT all that cheap and as the technician explained to me, everyone is different and their hair reacts differently to chemo, not to mention, there are so many different kinds of chemo out there, so there's no way to know how anyone who is on chemo is going to react to any hair product.

I thought, "What the heck! The worst thing that can happen is the product damages my hair and if it's that bad, if I shave my head, no one will be surprised since they all know I'm going through chemo." So I had Jodi do my hair and he was sooooo wonderful! I got the full, pampering treatment... the colouring as well as a trim, hand massage, neck massage and just a basic couple of hours of solid pampering. It was worth EVERY SINGLE PENNY!! My hair LOVED the product, took to the colour and no damage whatsoever. I only wish someone had told me about Aveda products earlier in my chemo journey I highly recommend these hair products to anyone (not just those on chemo who are looking). Obviously, I can't guarantee everyone will have the same wonderful experience as I did because we all are on slightly different chemo plans and we all have different side affects from the chemo.

But, for what it's worth, Aveda was definitely worth the extra expense and and care the technicians take with you when they know you are undergoing chemo. I would NOT recommend anyone try the drugstore, off the shelf products... but then, I wouldn't recommend them for non-chemo users either

Hugggggggs,

Cheryl

pamness said:

I did have my hair highlighted during chemo
I was diagnosed 3A - with surgery, folfox and radiation with 5FU - I asked my nurse practioner and my colorist - they both felt that highlighting would not be a problem. It was one of the few things I did for myself to make me feel less of a mess.

It caused me no problems. But, I know everyone is different. You might ask your colorist and/or your nurse practitioner and see what they have to say. I found it gave me a mental boost.

Pam