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Caring for Your Skin, Hair, and Nails During Chemotherapy
Treating cancer with chemotherapy kills cancer cells, but unfortunately, many patients also have unwanted side effects, such as hair loss, dry skin, and brittle nails.
Watching your hair fall out can be especially distressing. “Generally, how we look is really important to most all of us. The thought of losing hair can be especially devastating to some people,” says Terri Ades, DNP, FNP-BC, AOCN, director of cancer information for the American Cancer Society.
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A decade before Grey’s Anatomy was even imagined, Patrick Dempsey -- the actor who catapulted to fame as “Dr. McDreamy” in the hit medical drama -- was already working on his bedside manner. No, he wasn’t preparing for a part. He had traveled back to rural Maine, where he’d been raised, to help his mother, Amanda, take on the fight of her life: a second bout with ovarian cancer. Her cancer, first caught in stage IV in 1996, returned in 1999, and Dempsey and his family were there to give her...
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But cancer patients have many ways to cope with such changes from cutting their hair short to moisturizing their skin regularly.
“It is important for people to know that there are many things that they can do to prevent these side effects,” says Mario Lacouture, MD, a dermatologist at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center who focuses on treating cancer therapy’s side effects to the skin, hair and nails.
Skin Care During Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy often causes dry, irritated skin. Rather than waiting to deal with symptoms after treatment starts, patients can take steps to minimize skin problems about one week before beginning chemo. Then, they can continue the regimen during treatment.
“There are many things that you can do to prevent that dry skin,” says Lacouture. “People tend to think of dry skin as just a cosmetic problem, but ... dry skin can get so severely dry that it becomes inflamed and more susceptible to infections.”
Lacouture’s offers these tips to prevent skin problems during chemotherapy:
- Avoid long, hot showers or baths.
- Use gentle, fragrance-free soaps and laundry detergent.
- Use moisturizers, preferably creams or ointments rather than lotions because the thicker consistency is better at preventing skin dehydration. Apply the cream or ointment within 15 minutes of showering. Reapply moisturizer at night, and moisturize your hands every time after you wash them.
- If your skin is very dry and flaky, ammonium lactate cream can increase moisture. These creams are available by prescription and over-the-counter.
- Some chemotherapy drugs make skin more susceptible to sunburn. Use a sunblock with at least an SPF 30, and make sure that it protects against both UVA and UVB rays. Protection against UVA requires ingredients such as zinc oxide, titanium dioxide, or avobenzone.
Chemotherapy patients don’t need to avoid the sun. Just be smart about sun exposure. Use a broad-brimmed hat, sun-protective clothing, and an SPF of 30 reapplied every two hours if you’re outside, for example.
Itching is also common and can stem from multiple causes: the chemotherapy drug, a patient’s naturally dry skin (particularly in people over 50), or as a symptom of the cancer itself.
While many patients aim for itch relief with over-the-counter hydrocortisone creams, they’re often too weak to be effective, says Lacouture. Instead, doctors can treat itching with steroids or anesthetic medications applied to the skin. If itching interferes with sleep, oral medications might work.
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