Chemotherapy drugs can cause a much more common and severe hair loss called “anagen effluvium among women. The hair begins to fall out within a few days to a few weeks with the use of medication, and women may lose approximately 80% to 90% of their hair. However, with the termination of the use of chemotherapy drugs, the hair returns to its original state. The hair grows back in most cases, except for the losses due to radiotherapy
Alopecia areata is an inherited, non-marking and autoimmune disease and is one of the primary diseases responsible for hair loss in women. In this disease hair loss occurs from region to region. It can be observed in any part of the body with hair. Mostly, the hair starts to grow again after 6 months and 1 year.
Hair loss may also occur in women due to skin injury and inflammation. Trauma due to Injury and inflammation may cause damage to the hair follicles, resulting in a hair loss called cicatricial alopecia, which has two distinct types. The first is due to autoimmune diseases. The immune system attacks the hair follicles. Cutaneous lupus erythematosus, lichen planopilaris, frontal fibrosing alopecia, folliculitis decalvans, keloid acne, and necrotizing acne can all cause hair loss, but the hair may grow again after the underlying issue is resolved. The second type occurs with exposure to physical or chemical traumas. Chemical injuries, burns, insect bites, radiation, some fungal infections, long-handed hair breaks, and inflammatory dermatological diseases such as psoriasis, pityriasis, morphea, scleroderma, or sarcoidosis can cause hair loss in women. In addition, prolonged hair removal by hand due to obsessive-compulsive psychological discomfort can cause irreversible hair loss.
Hair loss should not be underestimated in women, and it should be controlled in consultation with a specialist physician.