Okay, people think about cancer and an immediate thought is often hair loss. Fortunately, I did not have to endure chemo and all of its yucky side effects.
This does not, however, mean that I was spared from my cancer treatment having any impact on my hair. As I have over-shared so frequently in the past, I take hormone blocking medication because my breast cancer grew in response to lady chemicals, estrogen and progesterone.
I take Lupron, which “shut down my ovaries” by disrupting the signal between my pituitary gland and my ovaries. So my ovaries do not make progesterone and estrogen.
Other parts of the body make estrogen, though, for example, adipose tissue (fat and other stuff). This is one of the reasons that being overweight is a risk factor for breast cancer. This is why I walk three miles a day and eat the way I do. I was overweight and want to stay a healthy weight. I take another medication, Tamoxifen, that works by preventing estrogen from binding to cells in the body.
I have surmised that I have less estrogen in my body than a menopausal woman because my estrogen is getting knocked out two ways. I may be wrong about that but lets just say that my level of female hormones is well below average for a woman, even a woman of my age.
The first change I noticed was the introduction of hot flashes. Another change was that I’ve been getting hairier. At first I noticed more hair above my lip. Last week, I noticed a downy fuzz of barely visible hair on my cheeks and jaw. The last time I checked, I was not a 13 year-old boy.
Aaaaaaaaah! I’m the bearded lady!
But the silver lining is that just as I am a good looking breast cancer patient (with so many of us ladies having to get chemo, it’s an easy bar to clear), I’m pretty good-looking for a bearded lady.
And maybe I can make a little extra circus moolah on the side to help pay the medical bills.
Another, good-looking bearded lady, Annie Jones toured with Barnum and Baily Circus. From Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bearded_lady
My Eyes Are Up Here 
There’s an Indian woman named Avi in Queen Anne (I think? Cathy would know better) who does threading. It’s amazing for facial hair removal. zip, zip, zip, it’s all gone. Quick & cheap.
Interesting! What is that little poem…fuzzy wuzzy was a bear…fuzzy wuzzy had no hair
fuzzy wuzzy wasn’t fuzzy, was he. It makes no sense in your case but we all know I rarely make sense.
You crack me up, Mom.
This was an interesting read for me, because I too am +ER/+PR but, I’m still currently receiving chemo => Taxol with side effect of hair loss, however; after my CAF chemo regimen it appears my hair is already trying to grow back, and I noted more hair on my face than I could previously recall. Guess I never thought about the true effects of being forced into premature menopause nor did I ever expect to be a bearded lady.
Hi Diane! I’m so glad your hair is growing back on your head! I’m sorry about the bearded lady, stuff. It’s really not so bad but I have a better understanding of why chin and lip waxes are standard spa services!
You made me chuckle with this post. Those lady hormones are a real pain. I seem to have none left after chemo, all that down below stuff stopped working months ago and I’m trying to work out which of my various physical, mental and emotional states is chemo related and which is early menopause. Maybe its all the same – who knows?! My head looks like a piece of very old velcro and there are signs of facial fuzz but microscopic investigation shows there are no eyebrows or lashes to be found anywhere. I have every chance of being playboy pin-up for March 😉
I’m glad you got a laugh out of this! I did, too and it’s healthy to continue to see the light side of this. I’m guessing that since eyebrows and lashes are so much shorter than head hair, that maybe the former grows a lot more slowly.
Keep your head away from the scratch side of velcro. It sounds like it might hurt!