Alopecia – An Emotional Problem
January 2013
in “
Elsevier eBooks
”
TLDR Hair loss from cancer treatment is a major emotional burden for patients because it affects their appearance and constantly reminds them of their illness.
The document from 2013 discussed the psychological impact of hair loss, specifically telogen effluvium, which can lead to baldness (alopecia). This condition is a common side effect of cytotoxic drugs, often used in cancer treatment. Despite being medically harmless in terms of life-threatening risks, the loss of scalp hair was identified as a significant psychological burden for most cancer patients. This is largely due to the fact that hair and hairstyle greatly influence our external appearance, and the loss of it can make patients feel visibly marked by their disease. Additionally, hair loss serves as a constant reminder of their illness.
