Groundbreaking new research has revealed a promising and novel method to aid the scalp cooling process in the prevention of hair loss in cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy offering hope to hundreds of thousands of people around the world affected by the distressing side effect of treatment every year.
Researchers in the University’s Biomolecular Sciences Research Centre, at Sheffield Hallam University, in partnership with Paxman, have discovered that combining scalp cooling treatment with antioxidants can significantly reduce or even prevent the damage to hair follicles caused by chemotherapy drugs. This breakthrough has the potential to enhance and standardise scalp cooling efficacy levels, potentially transforming it into a more consistent and universally reliable method.
The research was the culmination of years of work, in partnership with the Paxman Scalp Cooling Research Centre formerly associated with the University of Huddersfield. Led by Dr. Nik Georgopoulos, the study uses human keratinocytes and hair follicle cultures to test the effects of cooling and antioxidants on chemotherapy-treated cells.
The paper, which has been published in the journal Frontiers of Pharmacology, showed for the first time that:
- Cooling of human hair follicles to an optimal temperature of 18°C prevents chemotherapy-induced hair follicle damage.
- Sub-optimal cooling at 26°C provides inadequate protection from chemotherapy which may explain why, for some patients, scalp cooling is not effective.
- When combined with antioxidants, such as N-Acetylcysteine or Resveratrol, even sub-optimal cooling temperatures provided substantial protection, comparable to optimal cooling.
- The combined approach effectively reduces the levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS), harmful molecules produced during chemotherapy that contribute to hair follicle damage.
- The combination (cooling with antioxidant) compensates for inefficient sub-optimal cooling and provides a powerful combination that can transform the clinical efficacy of scalp cooling.
Dr Nik Georgopoulos, Associate Professor in Cell Biology and Transforming Lives Fellow at Sheffield Hallam University, said: "Our findings suggest that the combination of cooling and antioxidants could be a game-changer in preventing chemotherapy-induced hair loss and could make a real difference to the lives of cancer patients worldwide.
“It highlights the potential for a more effective and accessible solution to a common and highly distressing side effect of cancer treatment. By improving the quality of life for these patients, this method represents a significant advancement in supportive cancer care.”
Approximately 65% of people undergoing chemotherapy experience hair loss. It is one of the most feared side effects of chemotherapy. This innovative approach could enhance the effectiveness of existing scalp cooling treatments, offering a new hope for cancer patients who experience distressing hair loss during chemotherapy.
Robyn Fink and Carmen Huff were two cancer patients that scalp cooled. Their experiences, whilst grateful for scalp cooling, demonstrate the current differences in efficacy between patients:
“Losing my hair was one of the most devastating parts of going through treatment - losing hair every time I showered was traumatising and there were times I wanted to give up [scalp cooling], but I am so thankful I didn’t.” commented Robyn.
“I feel so happy and grateful. It allowed me to feel normal and enjoy normal things all summer. It gave me so much more confidence to have my hair. I was able to keep my cancer private when I wanted to and share when I felt comfortable,” Carmen added.
The research was funded and carried out in partnership with Paxman Scalp Cooling, and further supported by regional West Yorkshire research grants. Paxman have been pioneering scalp cooling technology to help prevent chemotherapy-induced alopecia for over 25 years. The Paxman and Sheffield Hallam University, Biomolecular Sciences Research Centre partnership was recently recognised at the Medilink North of England Healthcare Business Awards, winning the Partnership with Academia Award.
Through nearly 15 years of research, Dr Georgopoulos’ team has shown that by reducing the temperature of the scalp before, during, and after chemotherapy treatment, scalp cooling triggers multiple beneficial biological effects that help protect hair follicles from the toxic effects of chemotherapy drugs. Cooling causes blood vessel narrowing to preserve heat, which reduces blood flow to as little as 20%, meaning less chemotherapy drug reaches the hair follicles. Cooling also directly prevents the entry of chemotherapy drugs into cells. In addition, scalp cooling causes hair cells to become dormant and stop dividing so that the chemotherapy treatment, which targets rapidly dividing cells, will bypass them. To add to this knowledge, this new publication proves that cooling reduces cellular metabolism and toxic ROS production. Thus, optimal scalp cooling can protect from hair loss because of its ability to trigger all these protective mechanisms at the same time.
Rich Paxman OBE, CEO, Paxman Scalp Cooling commented, “Our vision has always been to make our chemotherapy side effect management technology available to everyone, continually improving efficacy in the process. Our partnership with Sheffield Hallam University has been central to achieving this vision. Led by Professor Georgopoulos and the team at SHU’s Biomolecular Sciences Research Centre, this collaboration has delivered impactful findings which we hope will ultimately encourage further adoption worldwide. We are incredibly grateful for the team’s dedication and insight, and we are already working together on the next steps to translate this work into real-world solutions.”
