Compositions and methods relating to prevention of chemotherapy-induced alopecia

A method for protecting a human patient or a mammalian animal to be subjected to chemotherapy treatment of a tumor not residing in the scalp or other region susceptible to chemotherapy-induced alopecia of the patient or the skin of the animal against chemotherapy-induced alopecia, the protective method comprising administering a heat dose to the scalp or other region susceptible to chemotherapy-induced alopecia of the human patient or the skin of the animal whereby hair follicles in the scalp or other region susceptible to chemotherapy-induced alopecia of the patient or the skin of the animal are heated to and maintained at a temperature of about 39-45° C. for about 15-120 minutes and administering a chemotherapeutic drug to said human patient or mammalian animal between about 2 hours and 24 hours after said heat dose is administered.

A method for protecting a human patient or a mammalian animal to be subjected to chemotherapy treatment of a tumor not residing in the scalp or other region susceptible to chemotherapy-induced alopecia of the patient or the skin of the animal against chemotherapy-induced alopecia, the protective method comprising administering a heat dose to the scalp or other region susceptible to chemotherapy-induced alopecia of the patient or the skin of the animal, wherein the effective heat dose is a dose equal to or greater than that required to cause an increase in the concentration of a stress protein selected from the group consisting of Hsp90, Hsp70, Hsp25-27 and P-glycoprotein in cells of hair follicles and administering a chemotherapeutic agent to said human patient or said mammalian animal, wherein said hair follicles of the scalp of said human patient or the skin of said mammalian animal is heated at about 39-45° C. for about 15-120 minutes and said chemotherapeutic drug is administered between about 2 hours and 24 hours after said heat dose is administered.

A method for reducing chemotherapy-induced alopecia in a human patient or a mammalian animal to be subjected to chemotherapy treatment of a tumor not residing in the scalp or other region susceptible to chemotherapy-induced alopecia comprising administering a heat dose to the scalp or other region susceptible to chemotherapy-induced alopecia of the human patient or the skin of the animal whereby hair follicles in the scalp or other region susceptible to chemotherapy-induced alopecia of the patient or the skin of the animal are heated to and maintained at a temperature of about 39-45° C. for about 15-120 minutes and administering a chemotherapeutic drug to said human patient or mammalian animal between about 2 hours and 24 hours after said heat dose is administered.