Raising awareness of alopecia in the Hunter
KRYSTAL ADAMS,
Fairfax Regional News Network
2/07/2008 1:18:00 PM
One day in 2006,
Leanne Dallen felt a sensation in the back of her head while travelling in the car.
She rubbed her scalp, leaned back to her daughter and said “What’s that?”
Her daughter replied: “Oh my God, Mum, you’ve got no hair!”
The Bellbird woman was diagnosed with alopecia, a hair-loss disease in which hair follicles are mistakenly attacked by the person’s own immune system – like your body is telling you your hair is foreign, as Leanne puts it.
Two years on, Leanne, now 40, has a scattering of bald patches and wears a scarf or wig to cover them, with people often mistaking her for a cancer patient.
And while alopecia does not damage a person’s physical health like cancer, coping with hair loss can prove challenging, with many people going through depression after their alopecia diagnosis.
“You don’t believe what it does do you,” Leanne said.
“As a person, I thought I was strong until I got this.”
While there is no cure for alopecia, cortisone injections into the bald patches and oral steroids have helped some of Leanne’s hair grow back, but said she cannot take these forever.
The exact cause of alopecia is not known, although some studies have shown a link to stress, and Leanne’s situation around the time of her diagnosis lends weight to this theory – she had recently had a car accident, an unexpected pregnancy and was going through a stressful time at work.
Alopecia can strike people of all ages, and hair can cause hair to fall out in strands or clumps.
Some people lose just patches of hair that grows back within a year, others lose all scalp hair and some even lose their entire body hair.
Hair can also fall out and grow back, over and over again. A woman Leanne knows, who has had alopecia since childhood, had her hair grow back when she was pregnant only to fall out again after the birth.
Leanne said much of the problem is that there is very little awareness of alopecia, and therefore little support.
She has chatted with fellow alopecia sufferers on a U. S. website called Alopecia World, but cannot find much support in Australia.
Leanne is now looking to start a group in the local area for people with alopecia, to raise awareness, offer support and hopefully find some answers.
If you or someone you know suffers from alopecia and would like to join a support group, phone Leanne on 4991 2978 or 0407 912 978 or email alopeciacessnock@live.com
FAMOUS PEOPLE WITH ALOPECIA
Neve Campbell (Party of Five, the Scream trilogy)
David Duchovny (The X-Files, Californication)
Telly Savalas (Kojak)
Patrick Stewart (Star Trek)
Matt Lucas (Little Britain)
Princess Caroline of Monaco
Christopher Reeve (Superman)