Herceptin & Hair Loss
 

A little background (signature below). So I finished Taxol September 8th and then almost exactly one month later my eye lashes fell out. I was told this would happen by a few people so I wasn't surprised when it happened. But NOW I have noticed my eye lashes falling out here and there lately. At first I just thought it was because I was rubbing my eye too hard, but now when I have put my mascara on they don't seem to be as full and they are starting to look more sparse. This is a little bothersome to me.

Has anyone else experienced this?? Thank you.

Hi Sarah,

I lost my eyelashes once to chemo and then twice while on Herceptin only. I hated having bald eyes!! I still wore eye shadow and eyeliner, which seemed to make it less noticeable. My eyelashes are back, but not as thick as they once were.

After Taxol, my eyelashes came back, then fell out again while I was still on Herceptin. It was discouraging, but they are back now and as full as before the chemo.
Karen

Revitalash really helped grow my eyelashes back. They came out right at the end of chemo and grew back fairly quickly. I assumed it was from the chemo and not the herceptin.

Harrie is right! Revitalash is said to actually help most chemo patients keep their eyelashes. My Onc in Santa Barbara even sells it and says most all of her patients using it have all their eyelashes. I am getting some on Wed., as I haven't had eyelashes since last summer, and hardly any eyebrows. It's expensive (around 130.00) but oh so worth it. I don't know why i waited so long ($$$). Love, Vickie

Vickie, I know it seems very expensive, but you use such a tiny bit each time...I swear...it really lasts a LONG time!!
I have never been one to have nice lashes normally, but after Revitalash, my lashes are even better then what it was before chemo.
Amazing, yea?

Thanks, Harrie, I had forgotten about Revitalash until I saw your post! My daughter, an aesthetician, also swears by it and says nothing on the market can touch it. I'm excited...and she can get it wholesale with her license. We should spread the word on this...it's bad enough to lose our hair, but lashes and brows, ugh. I've been taking Dr Rath's Epican Forte and my hair has been growing back through Abraxane tx and now, Ixempra. And it's growing fast. Now to get those lashes going.... Love, Vickie

Now we're getting to the really important stuff. I've hated not having good lashes. The very ends of my eyebrows didn't come back either. Weird. At last, help is on the way. thanks everyone! ma

my eyelashes fell out 3 times after finishing Taxol. They are back to their normal self now. But my eyebrows never grew back to normal.

Do you have to purchase revitalash through a beauty supply? My lashes have come back post taxol, but they are much shorter. I confess I was rather vane (apparently) about my long, lush lashes, so I am miffed that I have short lashes! Ah, "vanity thy name is woman."

It's 57% off on amazon.

Thanks! MA - going to Amazon NOW - as I have a small credit there from a gift certificate.

I am curious to see if taking a 3 month Herceptin Holiday will have any affect on my sparsh lashes - or if the damage has been done from years of taking it.

Revitalash - here I come!

P.S. My other hair has been pretty much back to normal, except underarm, which was fine and light to begin with.

Me too.

Currently doing Herceptin until June, finished chemo in November. Hair on head is growing back, but lashes and brows are wimpy. It takes me a long time to apply mascara now!

I HOPE this works
 

Just ordered the RevitaLash from Amazon. Beware - it is very confusing as they have lots of sellars with many prices. I paid a little more to go with a sellar with thousands of feedback and many good reviews. Just felt more comfortable as there are SO MANY counterfeit products out there now. And they did not have misspellings in their listings ...

I had to give up on mascara years ago - just do the liner and shadow thing.
I could use mascara, but it seems to bother my eyes and I would rather spend my cosmetics dollars on skin and hair care and good foundation.

P.S. I also found products for wimpy brows at Amazon, but did not order any. Anyone try those??

Thanks everyone for all the information. I had my Herceptin tx today and I just had to ask my nurse if she had anyone complain of this same problem. She said that some of her other patients have complained about it too. It's just so weird to have them come back after the Taxol (well have them and then loose them) and then while on Herceptin alone they seem to be coming out and now be sparse. Oh well, I'm off to purchase Revitalash. I'll try anything right now. I do miss having some lush eyelashes. The good thing is my hair is growing back fast and furiously!! Cheers

Great thread!
 

This is a great thread! Really informative. Please tell me, anyone, if your lashes took some time to grow back to their pre-chemo length? In other works, am I being impatient and contemplating making an expensive purchase that may be unnecessary? Right now I am watching my shekels, but if there is a danger of my loosing my lashes again, I'll forkout the dough in a heartbeat! I despised the E.T. look of no lashes/brows. Really did not do a thing for me!

Sarah (flynny)what is it you are using on your hair and where can that be purchased? Would you mind checking to see if it contains any estrogen mimicking ingredients like parabens, tea tree, lavender, and another that I cannot remember at the moment! Anyone, estrogen mimicking substances?

Laurel,

I'm not using anything specific. Actually, I just take my vitamins (supplements) and maybe that has helped me. Also, I have some good genes (somewhat). Hair could be one of them.

Just curious were you highly ER/PR +?
I haven't read a whole lot about the estrogen mimicking substances, can you tell me more?

I have been on herceptin taxol for every 2 weeks since the beginning of June. I lost a lot of my hair , so I shaved it. I also lost most of my brows and lashes and some hair down under. I went off for a month while having scans done and everything seemed to come back. When I went back on, I noticed my hair coming out again, but not as badly. I now have a short crewcut with a receding hairline on the sides in the front, which is lots warmer this winter. I also am starting to lose my lashes and eyebrows again. I don't wear makeup and I am not a girlie girl, so I am having a bit of a dilemma of what to do since my nephew is getting married at the end of June. Between the weight gain and hair loss I am cranky about my appearance, but haven't come up with an answer to my problem. I will prob wear a pantsuit to the wedding, something dressy, and am debating on just being myself and staying out of pics. Maybe you gals have some advice.

A really simple way to "have some eyebrows" is to take 2 eyebrow pencils (1 blonde and one lite brown) and feather in some brows. You make short little strokes with one color and then the other. It takes a few tries; so maybe practice in the evening and "wash them off" before bed. Before you know it, you'll find having eyebrows quick and easy for those special occasions. ma

I must say that Origins has an unbelievable brow pencil with a brush at the other end. They even showed me some pointers about how to feather them nicely. The blond is very nice and then like MA said add a bit of a darker brown to off set it.

Woman of Steel, a dressy pant suit sounds very nice. I know you say you are not a "girlie girl", but adding a nice pair of earrings and something on your neck will enhance your look. As far as the receding hair line issue. There is a product by Bumble and Bumble that you could try. It is used for a quick fix for when you need to highlight your hair, but you don't have enough time. Check them out on-line.

Ruth had a wonderful head of hair pre-chemo and has yet to have in come in completely. (very thin baldish patch at crown of head) Any suggestions on that one? Do you think revitalash would work on the scalp?

She just had her port out, and we try to count the blessings rather than the hairs, but if there's something that would help I know she'd be grateful.

Thanks much,

Terri

I love Smashbox's eyebrow makeup. It is great for countouring! Still use it to this day!!

Revitalash seems to be have some controvertial side effect, it seems.. not sure what to think

http://blogs.wsj.com/health/2007/11/...ger-eyelashes/

http://blog.sephora.com/2007/06/revi...-benefits.html


My eyelashes took ages to come back about 4 or 5 months after last chemo. Both my eyebrow and eyelashes are much more sparse and my eyelashes very short now although I am happy to have some(I thought they may not come back). but yep do not go now without mascara and I am thinking of tattooing my eyebrow..

wish the bad comment on revitalash did not exist I would have definitely got some, now I am not sure..

a review of the different product to grow lush lashes..

http://www.eyelashgrowthproduct.com/#revi

I lost my lashes 3X. During Taxol and the other times while on Herceptin only.

Also, even now, when I lose my eyelashes (and we all lose one or two), I tend to lose them in clumps, (like this clump and then that clump) rather than just here or there. These tend to be in the middle more than the ends and the top and not the bottom.

I know that I will lose them soon because they grow long and then fall out. Before the fall out, they look great cuz they're long. Its not as bad as it sounds but something different happens to the lashes versus the hair that is on the head. Even my other body hair did not come back the same but my head hair did.

Although I completed Chemo almost a year ago, continuing to be on Herceptin has had a huge impact on my hair (still bald in the crown after a YEAR!!! UGH!!!) But...the thing that I wasn't prepared for was the loss of my eyelashes and eyebrows. So, I just might invest in the revitalash.
Now for brows....I am pleased with a "kit" called brow express - Anastasia Beverly Hills. (It is in a pretty gray box and I try to imagine myself being in Beverly Hills when I use it) I bought it at Sephora.
While I was using brow powders that looked pretty good, I found that at the end of the day, my brows were "missing". This kit includes wax and some brow forms. I found that first applying wax actually gave the powder something to stick to. As others have mentioned the kit has 2 shades of powder to make it look more natural. I am MUCH happier. Although it did take about a week of trial/error before I felt like I was able to get it right. If anyone decides to go this route, e-mail me and I can give further coaching.

Fullofbeans...wow, those blogs on Revitalash are a real eye-opener for me. I am not going to use it anymore.

Hey harrie thanks for commenting back on what I put there. Yes I also decided that I would not go down the revitalash route, although I really would really like nicer eyelashes..

Apparently the new enormous lash product is more natural with no paraben and protagladin.. it might be the way to go.

I think I will investigate a bit more but if anyone got a recomendation on a good and safe product to use let us know!

Hi Beans -
As ususal you are in there with the research!

Harrie - Question?
You say you used Revitalash for a while. It seemed to work OK and you did not mention any of the side effects talked about in the blogs.
How did the product work and did the effect last when you stopped, or did you just now stop??

I am curious about the effect - if it only works while you use it and if it needs to be continued but less often once the lashes are fuller and longer?

I think some of these blog posters did not use Revitalash correctly as mentions using it in the morning instead of at night. I am sure one needs to be careful to keep it out of the eye, with precision application.

(I have a tube on order, and still want to give it a try!)

I would love to hear opinions of our Her2 sisters here. Not some schmuck on the internet that is only trying to pick a fight!

Harrie, I'm waiting to hear from you like Steph! How did it work for you! From an earlier post, it seems like you liked the results you were getting!

Steph, please keep us updated when you receive your product and how it works. I'm really tired of these wimpy wimpy lashes!

I did not get any of the negative side effects mentioned in the blog. I have been using it for over a yr now. I still use it maybe every other day, but after a certain point of regrowth, I have really not noticed it coming in fuller or longer. I think it would be wise for me to stop using it now due to the possible risk factors and the fact that I am not getting any more benefits.

Terri, I really loved the result of having a better regrowth then how it was before losing the lashes.

Revitalash was formulated by a man whose wife lost her lashes due to chemo (from what I read).

After reading the blogs that Fullofbeans posted, I was thinking it might be a good idea to open up a new thread "Revitalash" and post those blogs for others to take into consideration.

Laurel,
Revitalash contains parabens. It's probably a relatively small exposure due to the tiny amount of mascara applied compared to, for example, a skin lotion. Still, some people recommend avoiding parabens altogether. My chemo nurse recommended the product and seemed unaware of any negative effects of these estrogen mimics. I used an ophthalmic ointment that contained hydrocortisone once every 3 weeks during each
chemo infusion. I did not lose any eyelashes at all until, 10 weeks after finishing chemo, they all fell out in one day! However, they immediately grew back and I could apply mascara again within 10 days. So far I have not had any eyelash loss on herceptin only.

Thanks, Rondo. I appreciate you taking the time to check the ingredients. I admit I had checked out a few blogs/sites regarding revitalash and got a bit spooked. I do not like the risk of increasing interocular pressure. It seems unclear if Revitalash adversely influences that, but I would rather err on the side of caution. In my case I have ample lashes. They are not as long as they were pre-chemo, but perhaps growth is slow. Should I risk eye damage for vanity? Temptling, though!

Unbelievable Eyelashes
 

Hello Everyone-my first post.
Several months ago the FDA approved a medication that has been used for years for the treatment of Glaucoma - it can now be used to promote eyelash growth. The Glaucoma patients using this medication had unbelievable full-thick-long eyelashes. A side effect!!! I'll take that.

The medication is called Lumigan made by Allergan. It is gel-like and applied-sparingly - at the upper and lower lash line.
This was a "hot topic" at the ONC office and several of the lady patients have tried it out-including 90% of his staff. The results are unbelievable!!!! My ONC had no problem writting a RX (to those he approved). You can not use it WHILE you are doing chemo. I am at the end of my Herceptin treatment - so it is OK. Its all about the chemicals they are giving you.

This is a prescription medication so a RX is required. It is expensive - $175 BUT my RX insurance approved it and it cost me my co-pay of $5.

So read up on this wonder drug to see what it is all about. Ask your MD about it.
I can't wait to see some eyelashes on my face - haven't had any in over a year.

I have questions for you all but at a later time. The neuropathy in my hands is making it hard for me to type any longer. Can you relate? LOL NOT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Later, Barb

Barb,

Wonder if Lumigan would make a difference one the hair?>

DO they have any theory of WHY this drug stimulates eyelash growth?

Thanks

TRS

Enormous lash product does not seem to have the side effect of revita lash (contains no paraben and no protagladin) but is still quite expensive. It seems to have good reviews aswell.

I went for a cheaper option that seemed to have received good review but with some mixed ones, it is only £9, so I will try it, but will considere get enormous lash next as it does not have paraben. I do not use paraben in any other product and it will just go on my lashes.. yep vain I fully admit.

http://www.folica.com/MAVALA_Eye_Lite_d598.html


Steph I can understand your position now that you have it and I think the the side effect must be after prolonged use from what they said on the blog. so if you feel like it go for it and let us know what is happening perhaps someone else can do the enormous lash at the same time, and I'll do the eye lite..hehe

ingredients for the "propellerheads"
 

OK, everyone - thanks for the input.

LUMIGAN - my hubby has used it for years and has fabulous eyelashes, however, they were long and thick to begin with. His eyebrows have gotten thicker and grow like crazy and need to be trimmed. Maybe from the lumigan as it goes into his eyes??

REVITALASH Conditioner- got the product yesterday. This must be the new formula as it has warnings on the box (mainly have to do with the PROPER use and mention the darkening around the eyes, and not to use if on chemo, etc.) and a paper insert. I have studied all that and am prepared to start using it tonight. (Would have last night, but was up late watching an old classic French movie!)

Ingredients: Water (Aqua). Sodium Chloride, Chlorphenisen, Phenoxyethanol, Cellulose Gum, Dosidium Phosphate, Citric Acid, Trifluoromethyl Dechloro Ethylprostenolamide, Panthenol.

Not such a long list and the "propellerheads" can look up each ingredient.

Unbelievable Eyelashes
 

Hello there!
I wish it worked on your hair-I would buy it by the bottle!! When my hair started coming back the color was black and white-looked like the coat on a Dalmatian. I'm blonde or was. Anyway- the medication stimulates the eyelash growth cycle. You can Goggle Lumigan and you will get alot of information and some photos.

Our local NBC new anchors are giving this a try and keeping the viewers updated.

Later, Barb
I'm going to try and work on this signature thing now. LOL