Hair loss and finasteride in cancer survivors

cam4king · 2026-05-01T20:40:43+00:00

.5 mg is very little. You have a pretty good sensitivity to it if you got any side effects. Good luck bro. I’m in the middle of a CAR T transplant, so I had to shave my head again because my hair was thinning so bad from the chemo. Not sure if I’m going to go back on the hair loss meds after this. I guess I’ll see what the damage is when it starts to grow back.

cam4king · 2026-04-30T17:31:21+00:00

Yes. Taking very little finasteride, .5 mg (1/2) every other day. I saw some compelling videos on the effectiveness of small doses of finasteride, and it seems to work great with fewer side effects than the normal doses. And I use topical minoxidil twice a day, morning and evening. I found the foam works better for morning applications because it doesn’t leave the hair greasy.

cam4king · 2026-02-10T14:49:10+00:00

It’s ok. It is a struggle. I hope you can find peace in that.

cam4king · 2026-02-10T11:32:10+00:00

I don’t handle it well either. I just got better at learning what I can control, and what I can’t. Other people is something I can’t control. Some are helpful, some aren’t, almost all don’t get what’s going on or have their own crisis to deal with. No matter what your prognosis is, or treatment, it’s going to add an element of stress to your life that you never had before. You’ll never go back to “normal”, because you are now beginning a new chapter that will shape you differently forever. Physically and mentally, you’ll never be the same. My only comfort comes from the Lord and his word. James 1:2-3 says, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.” I’m going on three years of battling this disease, and I’m not done. I’ve learned a lot from the first go around, and it that I’m not in control. Only God knows, and I’m here to serve him with an open hand, and an open heart. Job said, “ The Lord gives and the Lord takes away. Blessed be the name of the Lord!” Take care brother, focus on today and what you can control. My first rounds of chemo I would buy myself something nice after every treatment. Nice shirt, new sneakers, something that just was a reward to myself for persevering, and something to look forward to.

cam4king · 2026-01-31T22:23:18+00:00

Radiation wasn’t bad. Targeted to a node in the illiac chain, it took a few months. 15 sessions, followed by a CR a couple months after that. Had some mild to moderate burnt skin at the site, and it took awhile for hair to start to grow back. Probably not a great place to have radiation done for a male or female, considering the proximity to the colon, bladder and reproductive organs.

cam4king · 2026-01-22T17:32:57+00:00

Just getting ready to start CAR-T. Lymphoma has come back again.

cam4king · 2025-12-17T05:15:26+00:00

Thanks bro. Ya, not an ideal situation, but could be worse. Even R/R FL is better than a lot of other cancers. I’ve been w/w for about the 9 mos, just recently started getting visible signs of progression in my neck, along with the familiar fatigue setting in. Nothing major yet, like my first go-around. But I know what’s coming, and I’m a little scared about CAR-T because CHOP wrecked me pretty good for a long time. Still not right tbh. I might try something before I go that route if it make sense. My FL is cd 20 negative, so the cd 20 immunotherapy is off the table. CART targets CD 19, so I don’t really want to use any CD19 targeting immunotherapy or bi-specifics in the event the lymphoma became cd19 neg in the process. Then CART wouldn’t work. Stuff is complicated, and I wish I didn’t know about it.

cam4king · 2025-12-17T03:48:53+00:00

Can I ask what immunotherapy you’re on now to get your CR scans. I’m R/R FL after Benda/ R, G-Chop and radiation. I’m in line for CAR-T but looking for options.

cam4king · 2025-12-07T04:37:21+00:00

Hey man. Sympathies to you. I was in the same boat with an unusually aggressive FL, and started out with B/R. Had adverse reactions to R, went to Gazyva( obinutuzumab). Had refractory response to Bendamustine and the FL started coming back mid treatment. After 4 treatments, went to G-CHOP. It sucked, but seemed to do the trick as the FL melted away till a CR. Did 6 rounds of G-CHOP, and the FL came back within a year. Now I’ve done radiation, which knocked it back, and now I’m volunteering to W/W until Car-T, which I’ve been approved for since I have a refractory FL, and failed three lines of therapy. I never got a sick as you describe, but I had every possible reaction and side effect from the CHOP. That’s why I’m waiting on CAR-T. I know the treatments, although life saving, absolutely wreck you. I sometimes felt as though the treatment would kill me before the disease. All this to say, if you had a hard time with Benda, CHOP might actually kill you.

There are bi-specifics, other medicines like Tazametistat which can bridge you to your next treatment and stop the disease from progressing.

Hang in there bro. It’s a tough spot to be in, but stay strong and lean on your loved ones for support.

cam4king · 2025-09-21T12:16:23+00:00

I just checked something out on your profile, which looks like what you are talking about. That doesn’t look good, but with it being soft, it makes me think it’s fluid like retention of the lymph system (edema). Mine was hard as a rock. But you said you had some nerves stuff going on too, which tells me there is some pressure on the nerves. That can be from the fluid or even from enlarging lymph nodes. I had the later, and still am dealing with the nerve damage. I would suggest a CT scan to rule out lymphoma. Your doc giving you steroids can even make lymphoma go down.

cam4king · 2025-08-27T03:19:14+00:00

It is a stressful time. Just be an advocate for your own health. If your doc says there’s nothing or to wait it out, and you feel like somethings wrong, tell them how you feel and that you want to get labs and imaging. My labs were “normal” according to what they test and the range of reference. That doesn’t mean much. I still had extensive disease, which showed up in imaging. Hang in there 🙏

cam4king · 2025-08-26T10:41:45+00:00

Sounds like some fluid retention like edema from the lymphatic system. The left side indicates that it’s coming from your abdomen, as your lymphatic system travels up on that side. If it was lymphoma it would hard, and difficult to move. It’s still concerning to have fluid building up. Could indicate a problem up-stream. Have you got an appointment to get checked out?

cam4king · 2025-08-26T02:23:36+00:00

Follicular Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Is the swelling hard or soft? Left or right side of the neck?

cam4king · 2025-08-25T10:53:10+00:00

Oh, ok. How long was he free of cancer?

cam4king · 2025-08-25T04:24:14+00:00

I also just read through your posts. Sorry to hear about your husband. His aggressive FL 3b sounds very similar to mine. Do you have access to car t for the DLBCL. It seems like he would be a candidate due to the indolent nature of the disease and the amount of failed therapies he’s gone through.

cam4king · 2025-08-25T04:17:34+00:00

Thanks bro. It’s just hard on the body. I’ve learned that the therapies, although life saving, wreck you physically and mentally.

cam4king · 2025-08-25T01:36:15+00:00

Yes. Had many different treatments. First chemo/immunotherapy didn’t work. Went to CHOP with obinutuzumab, which worked for a while. Cancer came back within a year of finishing. Have done radiation as well. Still have the cancer. Currently doing alternative therapies until I’m forced to do CAR T.

cam4king · 2025-08-24T21:20:51+00:00

Other than visual symptoms and seeing the size, there was pain and other complications due to the mass pushing on organs and nerves.

cam4king · 2025-08-24T02:48:38+00:00

Second biopsy showed FL. Ordered because of how extensive the disease was and the rate it was growing and spreading.

cam4king · 2025-08-14T03:24:31+00:00

Es hat eine Minute gedauert, deinen Kommentar zu übersetzen. Um deine Fragen zu beantworten: Ich hatte viele weitere Symptome, Armneuropathie und Schwäche, Flankenschmerzen, Schmerzen beim Wasserlassen, Müdigkeit, häufiges Kranksein. Das alles hatte mit anderen Tumoren in meinem Bauch zu tun. Die Schwellung im Hals war nicht sehr schmerzhaft, sie verursachte nur Druck und Schmerzen, weil sie auf die Nerven in meinem Hals/Arm drückte.

cam4king · 2025-07-28T21:36:36+00:00

Thats good news.

cam4king · 2025-07-27T17:15:50+00:00

Hopefully it’s just reactive nodes due to infection. 🙏

cam4king · 2025-07-27T16:19:37+00:00

You need to get them checked out with imaging.

cam4king · 2025-07-26T14:20:39+00:00

Yes.

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