One of the unfortunate consequences of chemotherapy for treatment of cancer is the occurrence of hair loss. However it looks like this hair loss may be able to be reduced by a new treatment, which is based around cooling. Although it may seen a fairly inconsequential effect compared to cancer it can however been seen by the patient as an important issue and studies have shown that some people will not take chemotherapy due to the hair loss which comes with it. In some respects it is not that surprising given that the sudden loss of hair is a huge sign that someone is going through cancer, which some would much rather be a private matter, as opposed to be, being telegraphed to everyone.
The method is essentially to keep the scalp cool, what this does is reduce the temperature of the scalp, this in turn will reduce the blood flow to the hair follicles. This is done when the chemotherapy is most applied. This method has also been used with ice and a cap. However technology has progressed there is now the DigniCap which uses two layers of cap which is connected to a unit which is as large as a washing machine. The system pushes coolant through the cap before the chemo stars, and then all the way past the end of the chemo. Although the treatment is not very comfortable it is still better than an ice cap bath, which can be too hard to tolerate for most patients. Another cap is called the Penguin Cold cap, in this version the cap is filled with a gel that is frozen. Then the cap is refrigerated, it is then placed on the head, as there is no cooling method, multiple caps have to be kept on ice, up to 15 might been needed in one session. Neither cap is approved by the FDA.
About 60 percent of women who used the cap were found to been keeping most of their hair. However caps don't seem to work well for women who have already lost their hair due to chemotherapy, also it should be noted that certain cancers such as hematologic malignancies are not advised for this due to the cancer cells being within the blood supply.