Rogaine! seems to be working for me

Please feel free to read, share your thoughts, your stories and connect with others!
User avatar
ginabeewell
Posts: 565
Joined: Wed Oct 24, 2018 10:30 am

Rogaine! seems to be working for me

Postby ginabeewell » Fri Sep 06, 2019 10:07 am

I read an article somewhere along the line that suggested that Rogaine actually worked to grow or maintain hair in patients who were going through chemo.

I figured it was worth a shot and bought the generic version to try out. I started in early July, about the same time that I was on a chemo break to prep for my liver resection on July 17. I used it daily for a while, then kind of missed a few weeks around my surgery, and I would say I resumed "spotty" usage thereafter.

Well I got my hair cut last week, and the stylist held up my hair for me - I could clearly see an inch or so of new growth - after which the hair thinned substantially. In some areas, the new growth is curly! I am also realizing that the two areas that were looking bald (I used to brush a little eyebrow powder there to cover it up) were now pretty thickly covered in new hair. I definitely focused the Rogaine there when I was applying.

I'm almost through my second round of chemo since my break, and my hair does not seem to be falling out. I guess I'll keep going with the Rogaine!
49 YO mom of twins (11) lucky stepmom of 16/19 year olds
9/17/18 DX stage 4 CRC w inoperable liver mets CEA 931
Currently NED!

Join me on a lookback of my journey via my Strive for Five on Substack here:
https://ginajacobson.substack.com

All treatment details here:
https://www.weareallmadeofstars.net/col ... nt-journey

My favorite posts here:
https://weareallmadeofstars.net/favorite-posts

Claudine
Posts: 808
Joined: Tue Mar 12, 2019 2:41 pm
Location: Montana

Re: Rogaine! seems to be working for me

Postby Claudine » Fri Sep 06, 2019 11:29 am

I found this article, which seems to indicate that once you start Rogaine, you have to take it for the rest of your life. Something to be aware of!

http://herwaroncancer.com/taxotere/side ... oss-cured/
Wife of Dx 04/18 (51 yo). MSS, KRAS G12A, no primary

Tumors: L4 04/18; left adrenal gland & small lung nodules 03/19
rectum 02/22 (pT3 pN0 stage 2A); L3 09/22

Surgeries: intestinal resect. 05/18 (no cancer - Crohn's); adrenalectomy 02/20
L3-L4-L5 fusion and corpectomy 05/20; LAR 04/22; ileo reversal 09/22
L2-L3 fusion and corpectomy 09/22

Treatments: EBRT 04/18; SBRT 02/19; Failed adjuvant Xelox ; Folfiri/Avastin 03/19 - 01/20
adjuvant chemorad (Xeloda) 06/22; SBRT 11/22; Lonsurf/Avastin 12/23

User avatar
ginabeewell
Posts: 565
Joined: Wed Oct 24, 2018 10:30 am

Re: Rogaine! seems to be working for me

Postby ginabeewell » Fri Sep 06, 2019 11:44 am

Claudine wrote:I found this article, which seems to indicate that once you start Rogaine, you have to take it for the rest of your life. Something to be aware of!

http://herwaroncancer.com/taxotere/side ... oss-cured/


Rest of your life, what?? Um, that’s a pretty significant drawback, WTF? Clearly I need to do some research here!!!
49 YO mom of twins (11) lucky stepmom of 16/19 year olds
9/17/18 DX stage 4 CRC w inoperable liver mets CEA 931
Currently NED!

Join me on a lookback of my journey via my Strive for Five on Substack here:
https://ginajacobson.substack.com

All treatment details here:
https://www.weareallmadeofstars.net/col ... nt-journey

My favorite posts here:
https://weareallmadeofstars.net/favorite-posts

Claudine
Posts: 808
Joined: Tue Mar 12, 2019 2:41 pm
Location: Montana

Re: Rogaine! seems to be working for me

Postby Claudine » Fri Sep 06, 2019 12:13 pm

I know!!! I was going to suggest it to my husband but now I think we're just going to wait and see. I've gotten quite used to seeing him with thin (but so soft!) hair and beard anyway...
Wife of Dx 04/18 (51 yo). MSS, KRAS G12A, no primary

Tumors: L4 04/18; left adrenal gland & small lung nodules 03/19
rectum 02/22 (pT3 pN0 stage 2A); L3 09/22

Surgeries: intestinal resect. 05/18 (no cancer - Crohn's); adrenalectomy 02/20
L3-L4-L5 fusion and corpectomy 05/20; LAR 04/22; ileo reversal 09/22
L2-L3 fusion and corpectomy 09/22

Treatments: EBRT 04/18; SBRT 02/19; Failed adjuvant Xelox ; Folfiri/Avastin 03/19 - 01/20
adjuvant chemorad (Xeloda) 06/22; SBRT 11/22; Lonsurf/Avastin 12/23

User avatar
ginabeewell
Posts: 565
Joined: Wed Oct 24, 2018 10:30 am

Re: Rogaine! seems to be working for me

Postby ginabeewell » Fri Sep 06, 2019 12:32 pm

Claudine wrote:I know!!! I was going to suggest it to my husband but now I think we're just going to wait and see. I've gotten quite used to seeing him with thin (but so soft!) hair and beard anyway...


I am not sure whether this is true or not. I think the "rest of your life" applies to people who are losing their hair in a normal context. In that case, the point is that the benefit of Rogaine is only maintained if you maintain its use. That makes sense. The article below makes me think that it may not be true for situations outside of "normal" premature hair loss, like chemo.

https://donovanmedical.com/hair-blog/20 ... se-forever

I'm not reading anything that suggests that somehow Rogaine messes up or changes your hair follicles permanently once you use it...certainly interested to read anything to that end if you find it!
49 YO mom of twins (11) lucky stepmom of 16/19 year olds
9/17/18 DX stage 4 CRC w inoperable liver mets CEA 931
Currently NED!

Join me on a lookback of my journey via my Strive for Five on Substack here:
https://ginajacobson.substack.com

All treatment details here:
https://www.weareallmadeofstars.net/col ... nt-journey

My favorite posts here:
https://weareallmadeofstars.net/favorite-posts

Claudine
Posts: 808
Joined: Tue Mar 12, 2019 2:41 pm
Location: Montana

Re: Rogaine! seems to be working for me

Postby Claudine » Fri Sep 06, 2019 4:33 pm

Well, things are pretty unclear I agree! The article I cited has this line, "But Rogaine comes with a really big drawback. You have to use it twice a day, every day, for the rest of your life. Stop using the drug and your hair will fall out." On a post from the Mayo clinic, it says "If hair growth is going to occur with the use of minoxidil, it usually occurs after the medicine has been used for several months and lasts only as long as the medicine continues to be used. Hair loss will begin again within a few months after minoxidil treatment is stopped."

But it seems that in both cases it may be in relation to "normal" hair loss, so I'm not sure what it really means in terms of chemo patients! meanwhile, if your hair is growing back, that's awesome!!
Wife of Dx 04/18 (51 yo). MSS, KRAS G12A, no primary

Tumors: L4 04/18; left adrenal gland & small lung nodules 03/19
rectum 02/22 (pT3 pN0 stage 2A); L3 09/22

Surgeries: intestinal resect. 05/18 (no cancer - Crohn's); adrenalectomy 02/20
L3-L4-L5 fusion and corpectomy 05/20; LAR 04/22; ileo reversal 09/22
L2-L3 fusion and corpectomy 09/22

Treatments: EBRT 04/18; SBRT 02/19; Failed adjuvant Xelox ; Folfiri/Avastin 03/19 - 01/20
adjuvant chemorad (Xeloda) 06/22; SBRT 11/22; Lonsurf/Avastin 12/23

KimT
Posts: 695
Joined: Sat Feb 20, 2010 8:53 pm

Re: Rogaine! seems to be working for me

Postby KimT » Sat Sep 07, 2019 9:29 am

I used rogaine for a few months. It works great but you do have to keep using it. When I stopped, my hair loss was more than before I had started using it. I’m now on a hair supplement called halo beauty. I’ve had amazing results with regrowth. My hair grows faster than ever before. It took a year though to grow out the loss caused by the rogaine. My advice would be to plan on staying on the rogaine indefinitely.
2/10 dx colon cancer
right hemicolectomy 3/19/10
Stage 2a 0/43 nodes
Lynch syndrome
3/14/10 colon resection/ removal of metal clips
Nov 11 dx ovarian cancer

User avatar
juliej
Posts: 3114
Joined: Thu Aug 05, 2010 12:59 pm

Re: Rogaine! seems to be working for me

Postby juliej » Mon Sep 09, 2019 4:37 pm

ginabeewell wrote:I read an article somewhere along the line that suggested that Rogaine actually worked to grow or maintain hair in patients who were going through chemo.

I figured it was worth a shot and bought the generic version to try out. I started in early July, about the same time that I was on a chemo break to prep for my liver resection on July 17. I used it daily for a while, then kind of missed a few weeks around my surgery, and I would say I resumed "spotty" usage thereafter.

Well I got my hair cut last week, and the stylist held up my hair for me - I could clearly see an inch or so of new growth - after which the hair thinned substantially. In some areas, the new growth is curly! I am also realizing that the two areas that were looking bald (I used to brush a little eyebrow powder there to cover it up) were now pretty thickly covered in new hair. I definitely focused the Rogaine there when I was applying.

I'm almost through my second round of chemo since my break, and my hair does not seem to be falling out. I guess I'll keep going with the Rogaine!

Thanks for sharing this tip with everyone!

Having your hair fall out is one of the most demeaning things about cancer. I hated seeing all the hairs on my pillow in the morning and in the drain in the shower. I wore a lot of cashmere beanies! :roll:

Also, I worried if my hair would come back when I stopped chemo because I'd heard a few negative stories. But on the first visit to my stylist six weeks after stopping chemo she said she could see "a forest" of little hairs coming in on my scalp. :D Since they were so much shorter than my hair they gave it a kind of a puffy, lumpy appearance for awhile! :D

But my hair really did come back so keep thinking about that. It's important to realize most side-effects are temporary. In fact I kept repeating "this is temporary" as a kind of mantra for all the skin, hair, nail, etc. problems I had throughout treatment. My integrative doc recommended 10,000 mcg of Biotin as a supplement when I was done with chemo. I didn't take it at first, but when I did I definitely noticed an increase in hair growth. You can store that advice away for when you're done!

Hey, did you start your blog? I think you'd make a great blogger!

Hugs,
Juliej
Stage IVb, liver/lung mets 8/4/2010
Xelox+Avastin 8/18/10 to 10/21/2011
LAR, liver resec, HAI pump 11/2011
Adjuvant Irinotecan + FUDR
Double lung surgery + ileo reversal 2/2012
Adjuvant FUDR + Xeloda
VATS rt. lung 12/2012 - benign granuloma!
VATS left lung 11/2013
NED 11/22/13 to 12/18/2019, CEA<1

Lee
Posts: 6207
Joined: Sun Apr 16, 2006 4:09 pm

Re: Rogaine! seems to be working for me

Postby Lee » Tue Sep 10, 2019 12:10 am

Okay, my situation was different, stage III, FOLFOX only. My hair turned a complete FRIZZY. thinner yes, but frizzy "big time". My pre teen daughter was a bit embarrassed tp be seem with me. I remember talking to a women while getting chemo. She was dealing with breast cancer and had lost all of her hair. As a mother, she could relate to my daughter's situation, but as a female cancer patient, she would have given her eye teeth for my "frizzy hair". She had none, I had frizzy hair. It's amazing sometimes the common ground you will find with other cancer patient. that was NOT a conversation I could have had with a non cancer patient and expect them to understand.

I was about 6 months out following my chemo treatment when my hairdresser said I can cut this frizz off. Yes your hair will be shorter, but the fizz will be gone. I told her to do it. It was a major milestone for me.

Lee
rectal cancer - April 2004
46 yrs old at diagnoses
stage III C - 6/13 lymph positive
radiation - 6 weeks
surgery - August 2004/hernia repair 2014
permanent colostomy
chemo - FOLFOX
NED - 16 years and counting!

User avatar
ginabeewell
Posts: 565
Joined: Wed Oct 24, 2018 10:30 am

Re: Rogaine! seems to be working for me

Postby ginabeewell » Tue Sep 10, 2019 8:07 am

Lee wrote:Okay, my situation was different, stage III, FOLFOX only. My hair turned a complete FRIZZY. thinner yes, but frizzy "big time". My pre teen daughter was a bit embarrassed tp be seem with me.


Mine has thinned AND is getting frizzy. When I wake up in the morning I look just like Albert Einstein!!

I had been working the clip on ponytail, but this past weekend I got sick of it and asked my stylist to cut off a few inches. It’s just long enough to pull back, and I can wear it down. The extra body I’ve got from the (maybe) Rogaine helps to make it work.

But now I’m on the fence about whether to stick with Rogaine or not. I’m not up for lifetime commitment when Julie’s exactly right - this is just temporary!
49 YO mom of twins (11) lucky stepmom of 16/19 year olds
9/17/18 DX stage 4 CRC w inoperable liver mets CEA 931
Currently NED!

Join me on a lookback of my journey via my Strive for Five on Substack here:
https://ginajacobson.substack.com

All treatment details here:
https://www.weareallmadeofstars.net/col ... nt-journey

My favorite posts here:
https://weareallmadeofstars.net/favorite-posts

boxhill
Posts: 789
Joined: Fri Apr 06, 2018 11:40 am

Re: Rogaine! seems to be working for me

Postby boxhill » Tue Sep 10, 2019 11:35 am

My hair thinned a lot on FOLFOX. I think I probably lost about half of it. Luckily for me, it was evenly all over, so I didn't have to contend with bald spots. I just kept brushing it back. (My normal hair was a bob an inch or so below shoulder length.) What has happened since is that it has grown back a couple of inches, so it is pretty thick near my scalp but thinner farther out, so it sticks up and out in places. In the morning I definitely get the Einstein effect. Or maybe a 70s hair band. :) A few months ago, I got my son to whack off 4 or 5 inches with the dog grooming comb and scissors, because that part was really thin. Now I think I may have sufficient hair to get a quasi-real hair cut. But I really, really do not want short hair.

My hair is kind of a wild mop. I definitely have the frizz. But I just keep brushing it back.

FWIW, at the cancer center they told me that the FOLFOX thinning seems to slow down or stop at about the 8th infusion for a lot of people. Then at some point it starts growing back. So your regrowth could be due to rogaine, or not.
F, 64 at DX CRC Stage IV
3/17/18 blockage, r hemi
11 of 25 LN,5 mesentery nodes
5mm liver met
pT3 pN2b pM1
BRAF wild, KRAS G12D
dMMR, MSI-H
5/18 FOLFOX
7/18 and 11/18 CT NED
12/18 MRI 5mm liver mass, 2 LNs in porta hepatis
12/31/18 Keytruda
6/19 Multiphasic CT LNs normal, Liver stable
6/28/19 Pause Key, predisone for joint pain
7/31/19 Restart Key
9/19 CT stable
Pain: all fails but Celebrex
12/23/19 CT stable
5/20 MRI stable/NED
6/20 Stop Key
All MRIs NED

Lee
Posts: 6207
Joined: Sun Apr 16, 2006 4:09 pm

Re: Rogaine! seems to be working for me

Postby Lee » Wed Sep 18, 2019 1:02 pm

ginabeewell wrote:
Lee wrote:Okay, my situation was different, stage III, FOLFOX only. My hair turned a complete FRIZZY. thinner yes, but frizzy "big time". My pre teen daughter was a bit embarrassed tp be seem with me.


Mine has thinned AND is getting frizzy. When I wake up in the morning I look just like Albert Einstein!!

I had been working the clip on ponytail, but this past weekend I got sick of it and asked my stylist to cut off a few inches. It’s just long enough to pull back, and I can wear it down. The extra body I’ve got from the (maybe) Rogaine helps to make it work.

But now I’m on the fence about whether to stick with Rogaine or not. I’m not up for lifetime commitment when Julie’s exactly right - this is just temporary!


Yes it is temporary, About 6 months finishing chemo, I had my hair cut short, no more Frizzy

good luck,

Lee
rectal cancer - April 2004
46 yrs old at diagnoses
stage III C - 6/13 lymph positive
radiation - 6 weeks
surgery - August 2004/hernia repair 2014
permanent colostomy
chemo - FOLFOX
NED - 16 years and counting!

TinaFish
Posts: 178
Joined: Sun Jul 21, 2019 10:11 am

Re: Rogaine! seems to be working for me

Postby TinaFish » Wed Sep 18, 2019 11:14 pm

I was using Rogaine a few years ago, just because I'm vain and I figured it would give me super-thick, luscious hair. Well, I never got to see it to fruition because it gave me a HORRIBLY itchy scalp. People probably thought I had lice. I just couldn't stand the itching anymore, and I had to stop using it.
F 45, single mother to son, 7 and daughter, 3
DX: stage 4 Rectal Cancer June 2019
Tumor Location: ? cm above anal verge
Tumor type: Adenocarcinoma
Tumor size: 5 cm
Tumor grade: ?
TNM code: ?
Stage : Stage IV-B
# of cancerous lymph nodes: ?
Mets: Numerous mets to liver, lungs
CEA: 22 in July; 11 as of August 15, 7 as of Sept 20
MSI status: MSS
KRAS/BRAF status: KRAS mutation
surgery: TBD
Ostomy surgery: TBD
Radiation therapy: TBD
Chemotherapy : CAPEOX+Avastin, 6 cycles, with CT scans after 3rd and 6th cycle.

AmyG
Posts: 371
Joined: Tue Dec 25, 2018 8:08 pm

Re: Rogaine! seems to be working for me

Postby AmyG » Thu Sep 19, 2019 11:28 am

Are you still using it?

I've buzzed my head and embraced the bald. I don't even hate it. I was concerned that it would make me look sick or make the kids uncomfortable. Those goobers are constantly rubbing my head and there are plenty of bald jokes to go around. :lol:
42 dx @ 9wks pregnant w/baby #8 8/18
Sigmoid colon resection 9/18
Adenocarcinoma, G2, T3N0M0..or so we thought
KRAS/BRAF wild
Liver biopsy is malignant, stage iv now boys!
Delivered healthy baby 3/19
FOLFOX + Avastin 5/19
CEA 167 to 24 after 4 rounds
Liver resection 8/28/19
NED!! CEA 2.3
CEA 5.8 idk wtf is up with that, but everything else is clear!
CEA 3.7 make up your damn mind...
CEA 1.5 that's a new low!

TinaFish
Posts: 178
Joined: Sun Jul 21, 2019 10:11 am

Re: Rogaine! seems to be working for me

Postby TinaFish » Fri Sep 20, 2019 9:18 pm

AmyG wrote:Are you still using it?

I've buzzed my head and embraced the bald. I don't even hate it. I was concerned that it would make me look sick or make the kids uncomfortable. Those goobers are constantly rubbing my head and there are plenty of bald jokes to go around. :lol:


I often thought about going "Amber Rose" and just wearing wigs. It would be cool to have a different look every day. And it would be so easy to just rub my head with a towel after showering. But I'm too scared to see what I'd look like bald. It may not suit me. And in theory, I'd put on a different wig each morning. Tailor my makeup to the color of the wig, and look like a million dollars. In reality, I'd be waking up sluggish and hoping to get my son to school on time, and I'd be throwing on a baseball cap with leftover mascara below my eyes from the previous day. I'm just SO not a morning person.
F 45, single mother to son, 7 and daughter, 3
DX: stage 4 Rectal Cancer June 2019
Tumor Location: ? cm above anal verge
Tumor type: Adenocarcinoma
Tumor size: 5 cm
Tumor grade: ?
TNM code: ?
Stage : Stage IV-B
# of cancerous lymph nodes: ?
Mets: Numerous mets to liver, lungs
CEA: 22 in July; 11 as of August 15, 7 as of Sept 20
MSI status: MSS
KRAS/BRAF status: KRAS mutation
surgery: TBD
Ostomy surgery: TBD
Radiation therapy: TBD
Chemotherapy : CAPEOX+Avastin, 6 cycles, with CT scans after 3rd and 6th cycle.


Return to “Colon Talk - Colon cancer (colorectal cancer) support forum”



Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 24 guests

cron