Has anyone on ACT (Adriamycin, cyclophosphamide, Taxol) chemo regimen used the cold cap to prevent h

Tricia2020

I'm starting chemo toward the end of next week and I'm trying to decide whether or not to use the cold cap to prevent hair loss. From some research, it looks like it doesn't work very well when Adriamycin (or doxirubicin) is one of the chemo drugs. If the cold cap doesn't work with Adriamycin, then I won't go through the hassle and expense. Any info on personal experiences would be greatly appreciated!

Kp2018

I did not use a cold cap. My oncologist strongly advised against it. My cancer was TNBC which has a nasty habit of metastasizing to the brain. My oncologist did not want anything interfering with the chemo reaching the brain to (hopefully) destroy any micro metastases that had made their way there.

I did use cold therapy on my hands and feet during the 12 sessions of Taxol infusion. I have not experienced an iota of neuropathy. If you're interested in this type of cold therapy, here is a good reference. https://academic.oup.com/jnci/article/110/2/141/4443215

Your hair will grow back. You don't want your cancer to come back.

Best wishes to you in your treatment.

Tricia2020

Many thanks for the info. My oncologist didn't say anything about TNBC metastasizing to the brain. Good to know! You helped me make the decision not to use the cold cap. Cold therapy for the hands and feet sound like a great idea. Do you have any recommendations for a certain design or brand?

Kp2018

Tricia2020, I'm glad that this helped make your decision. And, I'm glad you're considering trying cryotherapy to prevent neuropathy. It breaks my heart to read about the pain from chemo caused neuropathy that so many patients have had to endure.

I found products at Amazon that helped me implement the cryotherapy protocol. For my hands, I had to buy 4 Elasto-Gel mitts (Southwest Technologies TM7001 Elasto-Gel Therapy Mitten) and for the feet and ankles, I used Cold Therapy Socks for Women, again needing 4 of them. I also added replacement gel packs for the mitts and boots. The reason you need 4 is they warm up about halfway through the Taxol session, so you've got to have spare pairs to get through the whole session. I lugged everything in a cooler to each of the 12 sessions. It was a pain in the neck, but I believe it worked for me.

Hope this helps. Again, my best to you as you go through your treatment.

Tricia2020

Thanks for the recommendations and good wishes.

I hope you are safe and healthy!

cllinda

It's very hard to lose your hair. The cold caps were just starting seven years ago when I went through chemo. And I just couldn't afford them.
Now that I hear that it could interfere with the chemo going into the brain, I would probably avoid these caps, just like you.
I had TCH treatment and didn't have any nueropathy. Not everyone gets every side effect that these drugs can deliver.
Hair loss is hard but having the cancer come back is much harder. Get some pretty scarves, a wig or hats. Your local American Cancer Society can help you get these items for a low cost or free. I mostly used scarves to match my outfits and then a fleece hat at night because my head would get cold. Also, my hospital had a ACS person right On staff and she helped me get what I needed. Hugs to you as you go through this. We are here for you!

Tricia2020

Thanks cllinda!

MLT

I had 45 low dose Adriamyacin . I lost my hair twice, but it came back so full and curly! I am also TNBC, metastatic. On Xeloda now.
Baseball caps in many colors rock for the summer!

GregPWN

We recently had someone on the site that used it and swears by it. She didn't lose her hair and is convinced that was the reason. I will have to find that post. She was TNBC, that much I remember and I remember adriamycin.

Kp2018

Greg and Tricia, there are at least a couple of threads on the use of cold caps on the site. Just plug in keywords, cold caps, prevent hair loss and any number of other terms and you'll find the threads.

It's worth reminding that TNBC is a particularly dangerous form of breast cancer because there is no "targeted therapy" to prevent recurrence after first line treatment. Your best bet is first line treatment, (surgery, chemo, radiation) because TNBC has been found to be quite responsive to chemo. In my opinion,you don't want to do anything that will interfere with the efficacy of chemo.

Hair loss is temporary. Distant recurrence of TNBC (to the brain, lungs, liver especially) makes your life very temporary. Take your choice.

ChildOfGod4570

To be honest, I didn't have that type of chemo, nor was I even given the chance to use a col cap. My cancer center would not provide them. I have heard mixed reviews on cold caps; some people keep their hair while others still don't. If it were me, I would side on not risking the cancer coming back, for what if you had to go through a more aggressive chemo next time around? You'd have to go through all that again with possibly magnified side effects. I know I cried at the loss of my hair, but hats, scarves, and wigs really helped me to feel better about my looks while I had not enough of my real hair left on my head. HUGS and God bless.

MarcieB

I had the AC at first, followed by Taxol. The Taxol did affect my feet so my doctors did not give me the last infusion (I had 11 out of 12), to be certain it would not affect my hands because I am an artist. It did not affect my hands, but I did get some neuropathy in my feet. No one told me the option for a cold pack? I now take an estrogen inhibitor that affects my joints so sometimes I have pain around the ankles which makes my foot issue worse. I have recently found some cream that helps with that. As for hair - I know it's scary. I thought I would hate that more than anything, but it turns out I didn't. (I hated losing tastes more than anything!) I got myself a bunch of cute patterned cotton turban-like caps and loved being able to toss one on and be ready to go. No one (not even my husband) ever saw me without one, I even wore a light pink terrycloth one to bed. I think it is a big deal at first, and then it just is what it is. Hair comes back, but foot damage does not always, so maybe you should ask more about preventing that? I wish I had.

Tricia2020

Many thanks for all your responses. I decided not to use the cold cap but I am going to ask my oncologist about using cold therapy to prevent neuropathy.

Hugs to you all!

fiddler

Tricia2020

You have TNBC? My onco doc advised against using ice on hands and feet because TNBC is so sneaky and dangerous. I do have a mild case of neuropathy in the finger tips and some toes. No biggie.

The bigger problem is with Adriamycin: heart attacks. I have a stent, put in 3 years post-chemo. Cut out potatoes, anything made with wheat, rice and that should be preventive - along with walking 6k-10k steps per day.

Hair takes about 6 months to your first trim (to even things up) and you'll have a full head of hair somewhere around 9-12 months. I purchased cheap wigs for warmth and to pretend I had hair. To my dismay, I got lots of compliments - but rarely did with my own hair!

Best wishes for a speedy recovery.

fiddler

PS - I stopped Taxanes (I had all 3 kinds) 2 infusions early and still got neuropathy. It's choosy whom it strikes. Lucky me hahahaha