I had radiotherapy in December 2005, with chemotherapy (Cisplatin) at the same time. I lost all of the hair below the top of my my ears during the radiotherapy. Following the treatment I lost some of the rest of my hair all over my head. In the Summer I had my hair cut into a bob, as the hair regrowing underneath was making the hair from the top of my head stick out in a strange way. It was very strange to have thin wispy hair, as I've always had really thick hair. I also used to have it colured, and straightened it every day to keep it under control. When I had my hair cut I decided I need to wear eye-make-up to attract attention to my eyes, and not my chin and neck. I was surprised that my eyelashes seemed sparse and short, as I thought that my eyelashes were fairly thick. I remember having dificulty when buying sunglasses, as my eyelashes would sometimes catch on the glasses. However I put this down to getting older.

I have recently been reading up on Cisplatin, and have discovered that when given in a high dosage it can cause blurred vision and thinning of the hair. I also had the blurred vision, so maybe I had quite a lot of the nasty stuff. Almost one year on, I have noticed that my eyelashes have really thickened up, and I have lots of hair regrowing all over my scalp, that's now 2-3" long. It was tricky when my hair started regrowing, as it got quite bushy and I had a spiky top. I have started staightening it again to keep it smooth and sleek, and it's great to have thicker hair again. I think I'll need to keep it in a bob for about a year, to let it all grow to the same length, then I'll be able to start regrowing it.

I have been surprised at how long it's taken for my hair and eyelashes to start regrowing. I think I had got so used to the way that my hair was, that I'd forgotten what it used to be like.
So to everybody thats going through your treatment now, or have just finished it, a lot of things will return to normal eventually, but they will take a long time.

My neck has also changed over the last couple of months, on the left side I am regaining some of my old jawline, but I still have a lot of swelling on my right side. About a month ago I had a scare, because I noticed that the left side of my neck appeared to have a large flat swelling on it. I spotted it because of the difference to the left side of my neck. I now think that I spotted the difference because the left side has returned to normal, but the right side is still swollen. So maybe in another few months the right side will also recover.

I have been taking some vitamins and minerals for the last month, maybe they have helped. Because I'm still finding it difficult to eat fruit and vegetables, I was obviously not getting properly balanced nutition. I have also been taking some vitamins that contain the building blocks for joints, and my constant joint pain and general weakness has really improved.

Hi Jenni
Just great to read you are feeling more confident about the changes. Did you know that you can have lash extensions done in the similar way as hair extensions. I don't mean false eyelashes but salon applied eyelash extensions that last about 2 months. I also read the other day that plastic surgeons are do hair transplants on eyelids. trouble is the hair grows like normal so must be trimmed! Itwas developed for burn patients that lost the facility.

I think it's called i-lash by a company called abx - http://www.abxbeautyproducts.com/home.asp

I do recall that spiky hair on the head that sticks up. It was a nightmare to control. My hairdresser said it is the same as new baby hair and that spiking lasted over 2-3 years at the front hairline.

Have you tried zinc tablets which are good for hair tastebuds and nails.

Just pleased you are recognising changes for the better.

Hi Pauline,

I read the last pages of your diary yesterday. I'm not sure if I had read these before as I was concerntrating on the earlier pages. Because you said that the zinc tablets worke for you, I went and bought some. It's got to be worth a try hasn't it, I'll let you know if I have any dramatic improvements.

I have got fabulous nails at the moment though. The chemo is just growing out, which I can tell by the deep groove that has been working its way down my nails for the last few months, and is nearly at the tips of my nails. The ends are really hard, and I'm practising painting them. Got to make the most of any benefits of the chemo. I did break one today though.

The zinc tablets certainly helped me. However I find if I take them continously I lose the improvement. So now I tend now to take them in a short burst of a week or so when taste has dropped off again. Then once the taste seems to recover I leave them off for a while. Sounds odd but works best this way for me.

Right now my taste and texture acceptance are both very good, but the consultant did point out last time that taste does diminish anyway with age.