Scalp Transplants: The next new cure for balding?

by Bethany Sanders (Subscribe to Bethany Sanders's posts)
Oct 10th 2007 9:30AM

Categories: Diet & Weight Loss, Reviews & Products

You've heard of hair-replacement surgery to cure baldness, but what about a scalp transplant? In your wildest dreams? Maybe ... if you're a hair restoration specialist.

Because transplants require a lifetime of anti-rejection drugs, the idea of a transplant to cure something as cosmetic as baldness was never even considered. Transplant experts say, however, that they've created an anti-rejection regimen that lasts only a week in lab animals. The science is exciting for burn and trauma victims, but hair restoration specialists admit that they're watching the development with interest.

Consumers spend $1.2 billion a year on surgeries to replace their missing hair, and specialists say that for some, balding is truly a traumatic experience. I doubt we'll see scalp transplants in the near future, but you never know. What do you think?

Source

Comments (45)

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)

Lolly 7-20-2008 @ 12:46PM

I am a 28 yr old woman and have suffered terribley with Eczema all my life. In my teens I had a rare type of eczema that affected the hair follicles, it affected my hair, eyebrows and even the hairs on my arms and legs. I was tortured with itchy sores which led to weeping and bleeding. This led to the skin scarring, causing the hair to then not grow and never will. I have had to turn to 'hair replacement' I hate it, I have siffered terribly with it, just to get a more 'natural' look. The physical pain is nothing to the mental anguish I have suffered and still do. I would do anything to not feel the way I do.
In relation to your comment Jenny, it is a very traumatic experience losing your hair, even more so for a woman because it's not socially accepted for women to go bald. If scalp transplants did become available I would jump at the chance of one, I would give anything to stop this mental torture. You really shouldn't knock something unless you personally know how something feels yourself!!!

Jenny M. 10-10-2007 @ 2:07PM

"Specialists say that for some, balding is truly a traumatic experience."

That's offensive, I'm sorry. To lump balding into the same category as what a woman suffers from getting raped, or what a child suffers watching one parent kill another, is, to me, despicable.

Name the "specialists" who said that, and please have them justify their remarks. Otherwise That's Fit is just callously mocking the pain of real victims of traumatic experiences.

Bethany Sanders 10-10-2007 @ 2:17PM

Hi Jenny. Thanks for your comment. The specialist I referred to is quoted in the linked article. Clearly, I don't think anyone is equating balding with the traumatic experiences you mentioned. The person in question was saying that for many people, this is a very serious problem, and they'll go a long way to get it fixed.

Thanks for reading!

Greg 10-11-2007 @ 2:24PM

Jenny, I read the article three times, just to be sure that I wasn't missing anything. I didn't read anything that compared the "trauma of hair loss" to a woman being raped or any other trauma for that matter. Nobody mocked anybody else.

There are different levels of trauma. A 15 year old girl being pulled out her high school because of a move across the country is traumatic. An infant's circumcision can be traumatic. An adult losing a parent can be traumatic. A woman being raped is traumatic.

One person's trauma might not be that significant to another. Yet, to that person, it might be a life changing experience. Trauma happens to each and every one of us on this planet in one form or another. I am sincerely sorry if you went through some trauma in your life, but you are reading way too much into this article.

Dorothy 10-11-2007 @ 2:23PM

My God! We are torturing animals in labs in to cure a bald head! That is just about the sickest waste I've ever heard of. Men, get over it. If you are not secure enough to be bald and be ok with it -- seek mental help. Anyway, attractiveness has nothing to do with being bald or not, it has to do with being a gentleman and making your partner feel beautiful.

Linda 10-11-2007 @ 2:36PM

I lost my hair to chemotherapy almost 10 years ago. It never quite came back. Although I would not consider a scalp transplant, I would love nothing more than to have my hair back. It is not traumatic for me, just happy to be alive. However, wigs, hats etc...are quite bothersome. Just wish they would make something that worked to make hair grow back naturally.

Dave 10-11-2007 @ 2:39PM

Dorothy,

1. The anti-rejection research is being done for the benefit of receipients of transplanted organs, i.e. , heart, kidneys, liver, etc. This also includes skin grafts from other people, and it is this last use that inspred the potential use of this advancement to cure baldness. Nobody is doing this research specifically to cure baldness, so quit your whining about torturing animals unless you want all necessary medical research to cease. Further, if the huge market for such a cure drove the research that discovered the benefits associated with these advances for other ailments, wouldn't that be a good thing?

2. Your suggestion to bald men to "seek mental help" is callous and totally ignorant. Imagine as you grew into adulthood, or later, your breasts started to disappear, eventually leaving you with nothing there. If this upset you to the point that you would stuff your bra, or take other measures such as getting implants, do you think you'd require mental care because you're "not secure enough"? Or would this be a normal reaction to losing something that has been a part of you and your identity for your entire life, not to mention a body on which society places a premium for attractiveness?

Billy 10-11-2007 @ 2:47PM

Dorothy, The research is being done to find better anti-rejection drugs for transplant patients. That is for those that undergo transplants available now (kidneys, lungs, skin for burn victims etc.). It is only saying that hair researches are watching this research because it would mean a scalp could be transplated without a lifetime use of drugs to prevent the body from rejecting the transplant. The research is not being conducted by these companies nor for this specific purpose.

L 10-11-2007 @ 3:25PM

Chill out Jenny M. - this is just an article about treating people with hair loss. There are many types of trauma and everyone experiences things differently. L

Walter 10-11-2007 @ 2:59PM

Jenny, the person who said that for some going bald is a truly traumatic experience isn't making the news, just reporting it. So you shouldn't find it offensive, but rather pathetic.

David 10-11-2007 @ 3:07PM

Jenny,

I couldn't have responded to your comments any better than Greg. I am also sincerely sorry if a trauma in your life has caused you to dismiss the trauma of others.

As reactionary as you appear to be, I'm sure that you have had at least one bad haircut in your life that has caused you great distress. Just imagine if you were to discover that your bad haircut was to be permanent. I'm sure you would agree that that would be a traumatic experience.

chris 10-11-2007 @ 3:05PM

Although the word "traumatic" may fit best with most extreme experiences, like a woman being raped or dealing with the loss of a loved one who was murdered (as was mentioned), the slippery slope of going bald is a long dragged out process in which the traumatic effects pierce the individual slowly and sparatically. Fortunately baldness doesn't occur over night. At least the changes in appearence are only moderately altered, giving you slight changes to adapt to with each haircut. That said, it is an unhealthy feeling, almost disease-like, and the end result is inevitable, which is traumatizing in itself. Not to mention how rediculous it looks! I can assure you that no matter how secure one is with their self, you will be hard pressed to find one of these "secure" bald guys who wouldn't take his hair back in a heart beat! Besides, how many women do you know that simply won't date a guy if he has hair? Being a gentleman is one thing but liking how you look, well, there's something to be said for that! Dorothy, most women would agree that their appearence means a lot! I mean, would you be with out all that make-up?

skim211 10-11-2007 @ 3:53PM

I am a "victim" of male pattern baldness. I use the term loosely because I am not a victim at all. There is nothing traumatic about it. What's the big deal? So much money wasted that could be used for better things. What does hair have to do with it anyway? If it is so important to some men then why are so many men shaving their heads? If a person is so insecure about hair loss there is a much deeper psychological problem that needs to be addressed.

C 10-11-2007 @ 3:19PM

Have you ever watched a child with alopecia go bald in a matter of months or even weeks?

While it's not a traumatic event like death or rape, it's still very traumatic, not only to a child, but to his/her family or any other person affected by alopecia.

Alopecia is a life-altering disease that affects nearly 2 million americans. It does not matter what age, sex, or race you are, you can still be affected by alopecia.

Some say, "it's just hair, it will grow back". Unfortunately for those affected by alopecia, it might not grow bac.

Check out the facts. www.naaf.org

greg 10-11-2007 @ 3:41PM

Everybody chill out!! Some people take things too seriously and out of context. I started losing my hair my senior year of high school, and now I try to cover it up any way I can. Emotionally, it is tough, but that's life!! Certainly in the grand scheme of things hair loss is not a big deal, esp. compared to rape, etc., but that's not what this article is about.

Alper Baykan 10-11-2007 @ 3:43PM

Jenny M

You are by far the most audacious person I have ever seen ... that isnt a compliment. You are just looking for an argument; only an idiot would even so much as to ponder that there arent different levels of trauma -- with rape, and seeing one parent kill another at the highest, well, there is one thing worse. And that is my chemistry teacher Mr. Davis.

Go die
Alper.

Tim 10-11-2007 @ 3:45PM

Dorothy,

Lab mice are also tortured (along with other animals) to find new types of cosmetics for women!!!! It's probably a Hell of a lot more as well. I suppose this is ok?

KP 10-11-2007 @ 4:05PM

I have been using Rogaine since its inception and am down to my one last hair but it seems to work keeping it. My goal now is to try to grow the single hair as long as I can so I can wrap it around my head. Hope this helps others with the same problem.

Jim Singleton 10-11-2007 @ 4:31PM

There are many who seek to demean baldness as some kind of sickness that one could have done something about if they only cared about themselves. In my opinion a reference to balding being considered a "traumatic experience by some" is no different from people who might consider getting older, losing teeth, suffering from arthritus, bags under the eyes, over weightness, or many other various human conditions a traumatic experience. Those people are simply overly self conscious maybe even to the point of a mental ailment. So why mention them at all ? There are always those who suffer trauma at the slightest mention of change. Is someone trying to impress upon the public that we "should" be very concerned about baldness? Do you have a cure for aging ? I think not. They have a mental problem and should seek professional help. One other thing concerning baldness. It is extremely common and is not detrimental to ones health or well-being. It is truly only vanity at some point that drives one to try to reverse the natural course of nature.
I think people should work on their own self image and try to be less vain. Those of you who are vain please try not to project that upon me. I will say nothing to you when your hair falls out. Agreed?