If you lose your hair because of chemo, it will definitely grow back. It may even start to grow back a little towards the end of your treatment. At first it will grow back very fine but you will probably have a full head of hair about 3–6 months later. Your new hair might be a different texture (curlier or finer than it was before). It could even be a slightly different colour.
Unlike chemo, radiotherapy only causes hair loss in the part of the body being treated. For example, if you’re having radiotherapy to your head, you’ll probably lose some hair in that area.
After radiotherapy your hair is likely to grow back but it might not be as thick as it was before. The time it takes to re-grow depends on how much radiotherapy you had and the length of your treatment. On average it takes around 6–12 months for your hair to grow back after treatment.
Unfortunately, some people have permanent hair loss after radiotherapy or the hair that grows back appears patchy. If this happens, you may want to continue wearing a wig or hat etc.. Your doctor and radiographer will talk to you about the possibility of permanent hair loss before you start treatment.
