Scalp Cooling Device Could Prevent Hair Loss In Chemotherapy Patients
BOSTON (CBS) -- Hair loss is one of the most difficult side effects from chemotherapy, but a scalp-cooling device could make a difference.
It's a two-layered cap with a circulating refrigerated fluid on the inside and an insulating layer on the outside. A patient wears it before, during and after chemotherapy and researchers found 50 percent of women undergoing chemo for breast cancer who used the device kept their hair.
The theory is the cooling reduces blood flow to the scalp, limiting the amount of chemo that can reach the hair follicles and cause hair to fall out.
