A tribute to cancer fighters: Doing good deeds can never go out of fashion
Society for Cancer Advocacy and Awareness Kuching (SCAN)
“GIVE your locks, give them hope. Indeed, give that priceless strands of reassuring hope!”
It is the slogan for Society for Cancer Advocacy and Awareness (SCAN)’s hair/fundraising project that trumpets the message of love and care for fellow mankind.
Your lock is one of the best gifts for the hopeful patients. Having a natural hair wig is reassuring for women who have just lost theirs to chemotherapy. It helps lift the low spirits and instil hope in them.
Apart from being costly, human hair wigs are not easily available even at the local hair salons. You can get them through online shopping but still at quite a price, and they may not be within affordable reach for some cancer patients.
The hair project reminds me much of my own fight against cancer many years back. It was a trying time for me then when I discovered the deep courage within myself and how life must go on no matter what happened.
The irony was while I coped well with the cancer, I had quite an issue with my total hair loss despite it being a harmless side effect of the chemotherapy treatment.
Personal enduring battle
My self-consciousness was heightened by the fact that I was bald, although for a short time. A wig that resembled natural hair would be extremely beneficial. In several of the local business stores, synthetic hair wigs were available, but none of them were suited for me. They were simply too fashionable and most of them were curly. In addition, as I have discovered, synthetic wigs are prone to frizzing and have a short lifespan.
Of course, I did not feel comfortable in those pieces, but thanks to a couple of friends who let me have their personal collection of natural hair wigs. Sometimes, I wore a wig under my hat or beret for the fun of it. It looked so much like my own hair, especially under a beret or a hat, and if I did not tell, nobody would know that it was a wig.
The wigs by kind courtesy of a couple of friends made me look and feel better. Still, the most comforting was to know that there were people who cared – when I was on chemo, they expressed it with wigs and I knew that I was not alone in the battle.
One of the friends who gave me her natural hair wig was Datin Dayang Mariani Abang Zain who had to battle breast cancer herself not long after my recovery. That was when she started donning fashionable headdress, which has become her trademark just as donning berets has become mine until today. She became SCAN’s advisor, and I a member of the cancer society.
Dayang Mariani joined the Sarawak Children’s Cancer Society (SCCS) after losing her hair to chemotherapy, to express support to children suffering from cancer by visiting children’s cancer wards in hospitals with her bare head to show them that they were not alone.
The writer with Dayang Mariani (left). Donning fashionable headgears, as they were when they lost their hair to chemotherapy, has become their trademarks.
Making a difference
Looking back, I am reminded of how small acts of empathy can make a huge difference in the lives of others, particularly cancer patients who require a lot of encouragement to be positive.
A strand of your hair will go a long way towards cheering them up. After all, positivity is the key to improving not only one’s health, but also one’s whole quality of life.
Fighting cancer is a major test of endurance and a huge task. The patient must deal with the physically- and emotionally-draining side effects of various treatments.
Depending on the type of cancer, the treatment phase typically lasts months, and for others, it may seem interminable.
Inexplicably, their personal finances may be affected as well – some would be forced to temporarily quit working as a result of the treatment. Patients who live far away from treatment centres must pay for their travel, accommodation and food during their treatment times.
Heart-warming initiative
The hair-cum-fundraising project is a heart-warming initiative by SCAN and indeed, a wholesome act of love that deserves support. Organised in conjunction with World Cancer Day (WCD) 2022, SCAN collaborates with Locks of Hope Association, Selangor for the project.
The latter is a non-governmental organisation (NGO) focusing on collecting donated locks of hair to be processed into wigs and raising funds for the cause.
The NGO sends the hair to a factory in China to be processed and made into wigs there. There is no wig factory in Malaysia as the cost of investment in processing equipment is high.
Subsequently, the Locks of Hope Association would buy the wigs from the factory costing around RM800 each, which covers the shipping cost. The wigs purchased are donated to patients in Hospital Kuala Lumpur (HKL) and National Cancer Institute (IKN) that have submitted their wig requests.
“Wig-making is an extremely labour-intensive and time-consuming process. This explains why our hair donation project has to go hand in hand with fundraising. We need enough funds to pay for the hair processing,” said the founding president of SCAN, Siew Boon Lui, who is also a cancer fighter with Stage 4 breast cancer, also known as metastatic breast cancer.
“We will be sending the donated locks of hair to our co-organiser, Locks of Hope Association in Selangor. They will ship the hair to China to be processed and made into wigs. The funds raised will also go to our patient support programmes and activities,” she added.
The purchased wigs would be donated to patients in the Sarawak General Hospital (SGH). They would be notified once the wigs are available. The patients would just have to submit their requests together with supporting medical documents from their doctors for the free wigs.
Siew (right) with Wee.
Brave cancer fighters
Since the launch of the campaign in January this year, over 60 people have signed up to donate their hair to the project. Some hair salons have also collected strands of hair in support of the cause. One mother took her twin daughters to one of the salons to donate their long strands of hair; another was a mother-daughter team; and there was one who got her little girl, who had autism, to donate her beautiful long hair and taught her the value of giving and sharing.
There is no doubt that it is less difficult to educate a child on the nobility of giving.
Being involved in such a charity project, one has actually spread the message of love. Some of the hair donors and fundraisers for the project are cancer survivors themselves, and they have their own personal experience on what it is like to battle against the disease and are more than willing to be a part of the noble cause.
A few cancer fighters, some of whom are members of SCAN, share with me how they coped with their hair loss during their chemotherapy treatment.
Desidre Wee, diagnosed with breast cancer Stage 2B in November 2018, recalled: “After my first chemo, I was told by my doctor that I would probably experience hair loss in two weeks’ time. So I went to the hairdresser to shave it beforehand. My husband was emotionally impacted when I came home with my hair shaved. It brought the reality that I was going through a battle with cancer. My children found it amusing somehow, and they would stroke my head.
“I told myself: ‘At least I got a Sinead O’Connor hairstyle once in my life’.
“I was not really sad by my hair loss knowing that it would grow again – I was sad about the cancer diagnosis. At home, I just went bald. I would wear a bandanna or a cap when I went out, and for a more formal event, I would wrap my head with a scarf.”
Wee has donated her post-chemo hair that she had grown since May 2019 to the hair donation project.
Wee has donated her post-chemo hair that she had grown since May 2019 to the hair donation project.
“Hair donation is not painful. If you want to make a difference in a cancer patient’s life, go for it.”
Anna Chin, who had cancer Stage 2B, is another brave cancer fighter.
“I was prepared for the hair loss. I told myself all this was just temporary – getting treatment was more important. I bought myself beautiful head scarves and fashionable caps. I thought I looked good in them and that helped me stay positive,” she said.
Anna Chin: ‘I was prepared for the hair loss. I told myself all this was just temporary – getting treatment was more important’.
Another brave woman is Lydia Kuchang. She was first diagnosed with Stage 3B breast cancer in 2015 and later, in 2021, had a recurrence and diagnosed with metastatic cancer (Stage 4), has been twice bald. Presently, the cancer warrior is welcoming back her new hair after completing her 10 cycles of chemotherapy; she had eight cycles for her first one.
“When I first lost my hair, I wasn’t affected much emotionally by it as I had been reading about the effects of chemo then. I called a friend to shave my hair in advance. I never wore wigs much as I wanted to as I could not find a good one in town.
“For my second hair loss, I did buy a synthetic one online for RM49, but it was not comfortable. So I wore knit hoods. I am thankful that I have a very supportive family to help me go through the physical and emotional pain of having cancer.
“My husband even shaved his head for me so that I didn’t go bald alone,” said Lydia, who is now on hormone therapy as she fights on.
Lydia Kuchang: ‘My husband shaved his head so that I would not go bald alone’.
Chemo-related hair loss affects different people in different ways. For many people, it can be distressing. The hair loss, albeit temporary, adds to the emotional burden especially for female patients, where their image is affected. A natural hair wig helps in giving a sense of normalcy.
Encouraging response
It is heartening to note that Tunku Putra-HELP School, in particular, has made the project its community programme, soliciting hair from teachers, students and their parents, as well as helping to raise funds for SCAN. Several corporations have also encouraged their staff to support the cause by donating their hair as well as helping raise funds.
Much can be benefitted through the SCAN’s hair/fundraising project in society. It stirs a consciousness of the nobility of empathising with others, of caring and of giving even if it is ‘just a lock of hair.’ We learn how little virtues can generate seeds of love and kindness in the hearts of many and bring hope to the world.
For individuals and corporations wishing to support the project monetarily, the society’s bank account details are as follow: Society for Advocacy and Awareness Kuching – CIMB account number: 8008874480. Its email address is general@scan.org.my.
According to an international study, 65 per cent of those who have chemotherapy would lose their hair. This has a negative impact on their self-esteem and adds another layer of emotional burden to an already stressful situation. As a result of this struggle, some cancer patients opt out of therapy.
Doing good can never go out of fashion. Indeed, sharing happiness and being kind should be among top priorities on everyone’s list.
So, join us in this campaign and donate a few strands of your hair to help cancer patients who are suffering hair loss due to chemotherapy treatment. By donating your hair, you can help people who are dealing with cancer feel stronger, and be better able to focus on their health.
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