Persistent chemotherapy-induced alopecia: a scoping review.

Authors

Amy Ws Lo, Sheona Sn Leung, Cindy Ls Wong, Jessica Lai, Azael Freites-Martinez, Juhee Cho, Sanam Tabataba Vakili, Muna Alkhaifi, Raymond J Chan, Michael Jefford, Jennifer M Jones, Mylin Torres, Maryam Lustberg, Jennifer Y Y Kwan, Julie Ryan Wolf, Adrian W Chan, Shing Fung Lee, Corina van den Hurk, Edward Chow, Henry Cy Wong

Published in

Current opinion in supportive and palliative care. Oct 16, 2026. Epub Oct 16, 2026.

Abstract

Persistent chemotherapy-induced alopecia (pCIA) is defined as incomplete hair growth ≥6 months after chemotherapy completion. This scoping review aimed to identify gaps for future research by mapping pCIA's incidence, risk factors, quality-of-life (QoL) impacts, presentation, prevention, and management.
Thirty-nine articles were included. The most common study type was case reports (12/39, 30.8%). Only 2/39 (5.1%) were randomized controlled trials (RCTs). Most studies (27/39, 69.2%) reported pCIA in patients with breast cancer. Alkylating agents, taxanes, and anthracyclines were most frequently reported to be associated with pCIA. All six studies that evaluated QoL reported that pCIA negatively affected patients' psychological, functional, and social well-being. Scalp cooling was the only intervention shown to prevent pCIA in four studies. Twenty-one studies reported on interventions for the management of pCIA. Topical minoxidil was reported to improve pCIA in 7 out of 12 studies (58.3%). Low-dose oral minoxidil demonstrated benefit in 7 out of 7 studies (100%).
pCIA's incidence and risk factors should be prospectively evaluated across cancer types and chemotherapeutic agents. Given pCIA's significant QoL impacts, RCTs should be conducted to investigate existing and emerging interventions for its prevention and management, and to consider including these interventions in the standard of care.

PMID:
42888908
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 17 Oct 2026.

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