What is Scalp Cooling

medical fridge, cold cap chemotherapy

The treatment for cancer – chemotherapy – has a common side effect that can seriously cause emotional distress and even depression among patients. That side effect is alopecia, more commonly known as hair loss. For many, hair loss becomes an ever-constant reminder that they have cancer. It affects a patient’s body image and self-confidence and can lead to social isolation as there is generally a stigma attached to it. No matter how prepared a patient may feel, for chemo treatment, seeing clumps of their hair on their hands after a bath or on their pillows delivers a big emotional blow.

To effectively manage chemotherapy-induced alopecia, many forms of intervention have been in use. In the 1970s, a method called scalp hypothermia or scalp cooling was used to help improve hair loss in many patients. The technique works by keeping the patient’s scalp cold during the chemo infusion and for some time after the chemo drugs have been given.


The Cooling Caps


There have been several techniques of cooling that have been tried and tested over the years. Methods from using ice packs or bags of crushed ice stored in the medical fridge to be placed over the head, using cold or chilled air, and using packs of cryogel. Then, during the 1990s, a system using gel packs or ice strapped to the head needed to be replaced or changed every 30 minutes.


The cool caps are kept cold by storing in the freezer or fridge the night before treatment. The patient then keeps them in a cooler filled with dry ice to keep them cool. After wearing a cold cap for about 30 minutes or so, the once cool cap starts to thaw and is replaced with a new one from the cooler. 


The typical workaround is to have the treatment facility store the caps in their medical fridge the night before the patient’s scheduled treatment so that the patient does not need to carry a bulky cooler.


The Automated Scalp Cooling System


This system is typically confused with the traditional manual cool cap system. Scalp cooling systems are automated through a computer. The patient still has to wear a cap, but the big difference is that the cooling cap with integrated sensors is attached to a computerized cooling or refrigeration unit. A coolant is circulated uninterruptedly via the specifically designed channels within the cooling caps. It eliminates the need to replace the cold cap every 30 minutes. 


Although scalp cooling may not work on every patient, it has helped many others. However, cold caps and scalp cooling systems do have some drawbacks as there are side effects. But, for many patients, it has proven effective in limiting their hair loss.
Location: Australia

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