Scalp cooling for reducing alopecia in gynecology oncology patients treated with dose-dense chemotherapy: A pilot project.

OBJECTIVE

Determine the efficacy of scalp cooling for the prevention of chemotherapy-induced alopecia in gynecology oncology patients.

METHODS

This prospective pilot study included patients diagnosed with a gynecological malignancy that received DigniCap™ scalp cooling. Patients were divided into two groups based on chemotherapy regimen: Carboplatin with area under the curve (AUC) 5-6 every three weeks and (1) conventional Paclitaxel 175 mg/m every three weeks or (2) Paclitaxel 80 mg/m weekly. A 1-10 visual analogue scale (1 no hair loss, 10 - complete hair loss) was used to assess degree of hair loss by patients themselves and by a certified dermatologist using photographs. Changes in quality of life and body image were measured using the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer quality of life questionnaire version 3 (EORTC QLQ-C30) and the Body Image Scale (BIS) for cancer patients.

RESULTS

Hair preservation occurred with use of a scalp cooling device for patients receiving weekly Paclitaxel (n = 20), but not conventional every three weeks Paclitaxel (n = 8). Ten of 15 patients (66.7%) in the dose-dense group lost less than 50% of their hair based on self-assessment and 14 of 16 (87.5%) based on dermatologist assessment. No patient in this group acquired a cranial prosthesis (wig). There was no difference between groups in terms of quality of life (QoL) and BIS scores.

CONCLUSION

Scalp cooling may allow for hair preservation in gynecology oncology patients receiving Carboplatin AUC 5-6 and weekly Paclitaxel 80 mg/m combination chemotherapy.