Hair loss around scars on scalp (Photo)

It’s understandable to feel concerned about the hair loss around your surgical scars, especially after a significant procedure like a wide local excision (WLE) and flap grafting for melanoma. Post-surgical hair loss around scars is common, and while your dermatologist and plastic surgeon are advising a "wait and see" approach, there are some options to consider for the future to help with regrowth and minimize scarring.
Scar Management: Nine weeks post-op is still fairly early in the healing process. Scar treatments like silicone gels or sheets can help soften the scar and potentially improve the appearance over time. Once fully healed, treatments such as microneedling or laser therapy (like fractional laser) can further improve scar texture.
Hair Transplant: In the future, you may be a candidate for a hair transplant to cover the scarred areas. Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE) is commonly used for scarred regions, as it allows for the precise placement of grafts to camouflage the scarring.
PRP (Platelet-Rich Plasma): Once the area is fully healed, PRP therapy could help stimulate hair regrowth around the scar. PRP involves injecting your own platelets into the scalp to encourage follicle activity, potentially improving hair density around the surgical area.
Topical Treatments: While scar tissue can inhibit hair regrowth, in some cases, topical minoxidil or other growth-stimulating products may encourage regrowth in less scarred areas adjacent to the wound.
For now, it’s important to let the scar heal fully, as some hair regrowth may occur naturally over the next few months. Once the healing process is further along, you’ll have a clearer picture of what options, like hair transplantation or scar revision, could be best for you.

Hello and thank you for your question. I know you don't want to hear this but it is best to wait up to 6 months or so and assess the healing at that point. This type of healing can take a while to show the true results. At that time you can, with the help of a doctor, determine if hair restoration is an option. Best of luck to you.

Dr. T

Hello I'm Dr. Wipawan Vathananai, a co-worker of Dr. Kulakarn Amonpattana, from BHI Clinic, Bangkok, Thailand. I feel you regarding this issue. However, I would like to recommend you to wait at least 10 months after WLE because to see how much hair will grow back on the local flap. Also, the tissue in that area needs time to heal after WLE. Getting a hair transplant at the moment would not be good for wound healing and also hair regrowth.

Hair transplantation is going to be the way to address this. I would not spend the time or money on growth promoting therapies. After this has healed and after you have been given the okay from the cancer perspective, you can consider hair transplantation. You may need a few sessions to get fullness but this would be the way to proceed.