Hair loss impact on quality of life of patients with oncological diseases – pilot study

In oncological treatment hair loss is one of the adverse events related to the use of cytostatic drugs. Hair loss is a problem that to affects people’s well-being and quality of life. The aim of the study was to check the impact of hair loss in those patients who alopecia induced by cytotoxic drug therapy. The study performed from March to April 2018, and it was focused on the adult population of oncological patients who developed alopecia during oncological chemotherapy The study was conducted among 25 people. For that purpose a self – designed two questionnaires were developed: one concerning the quality of life and the other – the Hair Loss Impact Vignette (HLIV) and validated through the study. Hair loss in men has little or no effect on shopping, housework and sports, while in women it only affects housework. Both in case of women and men, it has a very strong influence on social life, perception in the environment and contacts with partners, family and friends. The quality of life related to hair loss was the overall result was -0,74 and it is considered as a low. 78,9% of the interviewed women strongly agreed that losing their hair negatively affects their social life or leisure time activities. Both women and men in the vast majority of respondents declared feeling discomfort and depression in connection with the hair loss. Most of the surveyed women believe that the loss of eyebrows and eyelashes is as negative an experience as the loss of the hair on the head. For the majority of men surveyed, the scalp hair is more important than the eyebrows and eyelashes. The study shows that hair loss in the course of cancer therapy with cytotoxic drugs has the greatest impact on the quality of life in relation to the social functioning and social activities, however does not significantly affect the individual activities. The pilot study for HLIV vignette validation confirms that the tool is appropriate for use to assess the impact of the hair loss on patients’ daily activities.