This week's artwork was donated by Dathan, a pediatric cancer patient who received treatment at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia . This is a response to a question about radiation-induced facial hair loss. I received a dose of 6000 cGy. One side effect that I have is that I have lost all growth of facial hair in the treatment area. Radiation therapy can cause hair loss, also known as alopecia .
Many patients find that their hair grows back again after the treatments are finished.
The amount of hair that grows back will depend on how much and what kind of radiation you receive. Every individual has a different response to radiation therapy and the ability of recovery from radiation side effects is also different. In general, hair loss after a radiation dose of 6000 cGy is usually permanent. However, the skin in the irradiated region may have received a different dose than 6000 cGy, so this is difficult to predict. You should discuss this with your radiation oncologist.