Can IG-SRT cause hair loss in the treated area?

Yes. Any hairs that are located in the area being treated with IG-SRT will likely fall out as a result of the radiation. The radiation damages hair follicles just as it damages cancer cells (hair follicles are rapidly dividing cells, which makes them sensitive to radiation). For example, if you’re having IG-SRT on your scalp for a skin cancer, you will develop a hairless patch in that treated zone. If you’re treating a spot in the beard area of a man’s face, the beard hair in that region will be lost. Treating an arm or leg? Any hair there (which is usually fine and sparse) may also thin out or disappear. This hair loss typically begins a couple of weeks into the treatment course as the follicles are injured by repeated radiation doses. It’s usually permanent in the treated area – the hair might not grow back, or if it does, it could be thinner or lighter. So we do inform patients about this, especially for scalp lesions where a bald spot could be noticeable. Compared to surgical treatment, surgery would also remove hair in that area when cutting out skin, so radiation is not unique in causing some localized hair loss. But it’s something to be aware of. The important point is that only hair in the treatment field is affected. IG-SRT won’t cause hair loss on other parts of your body or head that are not in the radiation zone. And it doesn’t cause the kind of whole-head hair loss that radiation to the brain or chemotherapy might cause – it’s only a localized effect.