A new wearable device currently entering clinical trials in Europe hopes to help chemo patients suffering from hair loss.
On average, 65 percent of people undergoing chemotherapy experience hair loss—and with some cancers, it’s as high as 99.9 percent of patients. For many people, it’s deeply traumatic.
And it’s not just aesthetic: According to Luminate, the top reason cancer patients stop or withdraw from their cancer treatments is peripheral neuropathy (nerve damage. By the company’s logic, if there’s a technology that could reduce such damaging side effects, more patients would have a chance at recovery.
“We were just astonished at how much hair loss dominated the conversation,” said Aaron Hannon, the company’s CEO, about his time talking to doctors and patients of how to innovate in the cancer space. “So from then on out, we’ve just been laser-focused on making that something that doesn’t exist anymore.”
They say that’s why they invented Lily, a portable helmet designed for hair retention.
How the Lily Helmet Works
The wearable device essentially applies even pressure throughout the scalp—a much more comfortable, convenient, and quicker process than cooling, another common yet uncomfortable hair loss option for cancer patients. Lily works by blocking capillaries and preventing the chemo from reaching hair follicles.
“We’re really excited about the efficacy of this therapy because it works with lots of hair types,” said Hannon. “We’ve had patients finish four to 12 chemo treatments and keep a full head of hair. There’s been incredible feedback about how it’s changed their experience of going through treatment.”
Lily is currently entering clinical trials in Europe but will eventually do so in the States, too.
“The next step is a multi-center study in the U.S. for FDA clearance there,” Hannon said. “New York, Florida, potentially Ohio—we’re openly enrolling sites that want to trial the technology.”
While it’s still in its early stages and not yet available, this could be a game-changer for cancer patients enduring chemotherapy in the future.
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The post New Helmet Could End Cancer Patients’ Hair Loss from Chemo appeared first on VICE.
