Retrospective Evaluation of Penguin Cold Caps for Chemotherapy-Induced Alopecia
March 2024
in “
Supportive Care in Cancer
”
TLDR Penguin Cold Caps help most patients keep at least half their hair during chemotherapy.
This study evaluated the effectiveness of Penguin Cold Caps in minimizing chemotherapy-induced alopecia (CIA) among 100 patients, with 95% completing the cold capping process. The median-reported hair retention was 75%, and 92.1% of patients experienced favorable results, defined as retaining at least 50% of their hair. The success of hair retention was significantly influenced by the type of chemotherapy regimen, with lower success rates for doxorubicin-containing regimens compared to paclitaxel and docetaxel regimens. No significant differences in success were observed based on patient race/ethnicity or hair characteristics. The study suggests that adherence to cold capping protocols may contribute to the high effectiveness observed.