A Novel Topical Candidate for Chemotherapy and Radiotherapy-Induced Alopecia Through Local Modulation of Apoptosis

The document from 2014 discusses chemotherapy or radiotherapy-induced alopecia (CRIA), a common side effect of cancer treatments, with an estimated hair loss incidence of 65% in chemotherapy patients. The study focused on the role of apoptosis (cell death) in CRIA, particularly the role of the protein Bcl-2, which was found to be lower in the scalps of balding subjects. The researchers conducted a scalp biopsy study to measure the "normal" Bcl-2 level in non-alopecia subjects and compared it with the level of Bcl-2 in androgenetic alopecia (AGA) volunteers, before and after the topical application of a botanical extract. The results showed that the botanical extract restored the level of scalp Bcl-2 towards normal, potentially preventing early onset of the apoptosis-driven catagen phase (hair shedding phase). The study concluded that positive modulation of hair follicular cell apoptotic process could potentially benefit cancer patients suffering from hair loss due to chemo- or radiotherapy.