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Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!ucbvax!ucsd!sdcsvax!trantor.harris-atd.com!x102a!hnewstrom
From: hnewstrom@x102a (Newstrom Harvey S 96783)
Newsgroups: sci.med,sci.bio
Subject: Re: birth control pills and hair growth
Keywords: chemotherapy, hair loss
Message-ID: <1575@trantor.harris-atd.com>
Date: 24 Feb 89 13:21:03 GMT
References: <222@truffles.cs.utexas.edu> <1489@trantor.harris-atd.com> <2494@phred.UUCP>
Sender: news@trantor.harris-atd.com
Reply-To: mkwin@phred.UUCP (Mary Kay Winter)
Organization: Harris Corporation GSS, Melbourne, Florida
Lines: 38

In article <2494@phred.UUCP> mkwin@phred.UUCP (Mary Kay Winter) writes:
>In article <1489@trantor.harris-atd.com> hnewstrom@x102a.UUCP (Newstrom Harvey S 96783) writes:
>
>>Another effective treatment is to use polysorbate-80 or polysorbate-60,
>>rubbed topically on the scalp.  
> 
>>The nutrients required in the diet for proper hair growth are
>>Para-aminobenzoic acid (PABA), cysteine (not cystine), biotin and
>>ascorbic acid (vitamin C)....  
>
>>Harvey Newstrom (hnewstrom@x102a.harris-atd.com) (uunet!x102a!hnewstrom)
>
>Does anyone know the effectivity of any of the above agents (or any
>others) for hair growth/retention for someone who is undergoing
>chemotherapy?
>
>Mary Kay Winter
>
The nutrients I mentioned above are for the proper nutrition of hair and
the polysorbate-80 is used specifically to combat cholesterol, sebum and
dihidrotestosterone in the hair follicles.  Chemotherapy treatments cause
hair loss for an entirely different reason.  Depending on the specific
methods of treatment, I would think that antioxidents could be used to
help protect against the oxidation caused by the treatment.  This of
course would depend on the exact chemicals used in treatment.  I know
of a case where radiation treatments were given to a women taking a couple
of grams of BHT a day.  She was told that she would lose all of her hair,
but she did not lose any.  Of course BHT at these doses is highly experimental
and is definitely not approved by the FDA.  Ask your therapist who is giving
you the treatments to discuss the exact methodology for hair loss on the
program.  Then, look for ways to counteract that specific methodology without
counteracting the treatment.

Remember, I am a researcher and not a doctor.  I am rambling on about some
related topics.  Because I don't know the kind of chemotherapy being used,
nothing I have said above can be said to apply in this case.
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