Ruth O'Regan, MD, professor and head, Hematology, Medical Oncology and Palliative Care, was quoted in news coverage about a newly-available scalp cooling system. University Hospital in Madison, Wisconsin is the first hospital in the upper Midwest to use the Paxman scalp cooling system.

The medical device has been shown in clinical trials to reduce hair loss in patients during chemotherapy treatment. 

"The idea is that, if you can basically cool the scalp with a cooling fluid while patients are getting chemotherapy, what happens is the blood vessels that go to the scalp kind of constrict, which prevents chemotherapy from getting to the scalp," said Dr. O'Regan. 

The system circulates a fluid through a silicone cap worn by a patient during chemotherapy treatment. The cap lowers the temperature of the scalp to between 64 and 71 degrees Fahrenheit.

In unrelated media coverage occurring the same week, Dr. O'Regan also appeared in three videos for oncology professionals with updates from the 2017 Lynn Sage Breast Cancer Symposium in Chicago, Illinois on September 14-17, 2017. 

Resources:

• "Scalp cooling caps help prevent hair loss from chemotherapy," WISC-TV, September 13, 2017.
• Interview with Dr. Ruth O'Regan about scalp cooling system - 92.1 FM Radio 
• OncLive interviews with Dr. O'Regan on treating breast cancer in premenopausal women (video, article) and the therapeutic role of ovarian function suppression