How to help your clients dealing with medical hair loss

For HJ's Breast Cancer Awareness Week, sponsored by ghd, we unearthed our conversation with Rebecca Morgan, director of Morgan’s Hair, Beauty and Wig Specialists, who gained her knowledge and experience from working with different clients who have medical hair loss conditions. She shared seven essential tips with HJ on how to provide a compassionate service to clients looking for professional help, which you can read below:

1. Understand the time-frame

With breast cancer if a client has been advised they will lose their hair, it’s normally 15 to 17 days after their first chemotherapy treatment. Your client may experience a sore scalp or tingling sensation.

2. Combatting over-night hair loss

At night, advise your client to wear a soft cap or a turban to collect loose hair. If your client’s hair is 7in or longer they could donate it to The Little Princess Trust to help towards making a wig for a child.

3. Have the correct conversations early

Discuss whether your client would like to have their hair cut shorter before it starts to fall out. This will help them to get used to how it may look when it starts to grow back.

4. Suggesting the correct daily products

Once hair has fallen out it’s important for clients to still shampoo their scalp and moisturise their scalp with non-perfume products. Suggest sulphate-free products as a client’s skin will become more sensitive when they are going through chemotherapy treatment.

5. Advise them on regrowth differences

Your client’s hair will start to grow back as soon as their chemotherapy finishes. It may grow back a different colour and texture to what it was before. Some straight haired women will find their grows back curly, however in time the curls will relax.

6. Stay away from colouring

Your client should only consider colouring their hair six months after their final treatment. You should always advise your clients to have a skin test before their first colour.

7. Avoiding certain products and appliances

If a client is having the cold cap treatment, do not colour their hair whilst giving them the treatment. Suggest a sulphate free shampoo and advise them to wash their hair no more than twice a week. It’s important for cancer patient clients to comb their hair daily with a wide tooth comb to prevent matting. They should avoid using dryers, straighteners and styling products whilst having the cold cap treatment. Finally, suggest root touch up sprays to disguise hair loss areas. Breast Cancer Awareness Month is brought to you by ghd. Connect with ghd on social media – Facebook @ghdprofessional & Instagram @ghdhairpro and YouTube @ghd. Click here to read the Official Schedule for HJ's Breast Cancer Awareness Week.