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At Opti Laboratories, our team of doctors has supported many people recovering from chemotherapy-related eyelash loss and eyebrow loss. We know how distressing these changes can be particularly when clients have already overcome the challenge of cancer treatment. With years of expertise and direct experience helping clients restore their natural beauty, this article is designed to answer the most common questions, dispel myths, and share what science and practice tell us about regrowth.
Not all cancer treatments affect the lashes and brows equally. Some drugs are notorious for their impact:
The chemotherapy drug most strongly linked with eyebrow and eyelash loss, with documented cases of long-term or even permanent changes.
A close relative of docetaxel; strongly associated with lash and brow shedding.
Used in metastatic breast cancer, also causes significant lash/brow thinning.
A cornerstone of breast cancer treatment; leads to total hair loss, including lashes and brows.
Similar to doxorubicin, with broad alopecia effects.
Often paired with anthracyclines; contributes to lash and brow loss.
Oral chemotherapy; less dramatic but gradual lash/brow thinning can occur.
Often given with taxanes; on its own less likely, but in combination adds to lash and brow loss.
An immunotherapy drug; doesn’t directly cause hair loss but can trigger autoimmune alopecia, which may target brows or lashes.
“After five months of chemotherapy to blitz my ovarian cancer in April 2008, I had no body hair left, as chemo kills the cells that produce hair follicles. Losing the hair on my head I could deal with even though I’d always had long hair. My boyfriend Mark shaved my head and I simply carried on with the same determination that had seen me through the intense nausea, fatigue and hot flushes of chemo. But without eyelashes and brows I found my face had no definition. My reflection was blank: I looked like a boiled egg.
In June, my hair grew back as thick as ever. My leg hair, too, came back with a vengeance. But my lashes were so short and frail they were all but invisible. No mascara in the world could help. Desperate to feel feminine again after having extensive surgery, I turned to Grazias beauty team, who recommended I visit lash extension expert Sue Marsh at her London clinic. It took two hours to apply around 200 false lashes and, when I walked out, I felt attractive for the first time since I’d been ill. I even caught my reflection in a shop window and was pleasantly surprised.
I would happily have spent £190 on eyelash extensions every three months for the rest of my life, but Sue warned me that relying on extensions full-time meant my eyelashes would never recover their full natural length. So, Sue sent me to MyLash (now part of the Opti Laboratories family). MyLash provides consultation and treatment for individuals that wish to activate and enhance their natural lash growth.
After a consultation, it was agreed that MyLash could help me. I painted a solution that was prescribed to me on like eyeliner every night and after six weeks my eyelashes were 25 percent longer. Within three months they were 100 per cent thicker and felt fabulously full. Best of all, they looked better than they did before I was ill. For an extra boost, Sue gave me a lash lift — an eyelash curl that lasts eight weeks.
The result looked natural, only better. Without being able to pinpoint exactly what’s changed about me, friends tell me I’ve got the twinkle back in my eye. And when I see my new eyelashes in the mirror, I finally look like me again.
Written by:
Becky Gee
Beauty editor, Grazia Magazine.
Over the years we have been asked many questions on this subject. Here are the most common answers from our experts:
In most cases, yes. Regrowth usually begins a few weeks to months after treatment ends, when the hair follicle exits the quiescent stage of the hair cycle. There are times when brows and lashes take longer than scalp hair to begin their regrowth.
Eyelashes and eyebrows usually show the first signs of growth within 6 months of finishing chemotherapy, but some people have had to wait 18 months. It is a very individual thing and you should not worry if you are not seeing growth after 6 months.
This is a recognised pattern with taxane drugs (like paclitaxel or docetaxel) known as delayed shedding. It occurs even after treatment has stopped but normally settles within a few months.
Rarely and unfortunately, yes. Some believe that Docetaxel has been linked with persistent brow and lash loss in some breast cancer survivors but it is a tiny risk with all chemotherapy agents. The mechanism is not fully understood but it is believed that it is due to irreversible follicle damage from the chemotherapy drug.
Most regrowth happens naturally, but treatments like bimatoprost can kick start then accelerate the process.
In most people, follicles remain intact and regrowth occurs. If no return is seen after a year, it may suggest partial follicle damage. If you think this has happened then you should raise this with your doctor.
Bimatoprost is the only treatment with strong clinical evidence for stimulating eyelash growth after cancer treatments. Studies in post-chemotherapy patients have shown that it can:
Accelerate regrowth of lashes and brows once chemotherapy is finished.
Enhance length, thickness, and darkness beyond the natural baseline if continued.
Be applied safely provided strict hygiene is followed.
At Opti Laboratories we have pioneered safe application protocols, insisting on the use of disposable applicators for every single use to avoid contamination or infection. This is particularly important for clients recovering from chemotherapy.
It is worth noting that most clients will see spontaneous regrowth without treatment, even though it may be slower. Bimatoprost can shorten the waiting period and improve quality and fullness.
There are some anecdotal reports suggest patients used bimatoprost during chemotherapy to prevent lash shedding, but clinical studies are limited to post-treatment use. We believe that the best time to start is two weeks after chemotherapy has ended, but we tailor the advice based on our consultation with you.
Our clinically proven, prescription strength growth treatment has been our gold standard treatment since we started in 2007.
Trusted by over 15,000 clients.
Each pack includes the treatment and the applicators, which lasts most people three months with careful usage.
A recent paper by Gaumond et al. (2025) offers valuable new evidence on the use of bimatoprost 0.03%, also known as Latisse, for chemotherapy-induced eyelash and eyebrow loss.
What makes this study stand out is its use of digital image analysis, allowing for objective measurement of lash and brow regrowth rather than relying solely on patient or clinician impressions. It demonstrated faster regrowth of eyelashes and eyebrows compared with natural recovery alone. There was also improved density, length, and pigmentation, with many of the trial participants achieving lashes and brows that exceeded their pre-treatment baseline. It also confirmed the excellent safety profile as there were no unexpected side effects in post-chemotherapy patients.
The authors also commented on the psychological impact: while scalp hair loss is often the main focus in oncology care, the absence of brows and lashes can be uniquely distressing because these hairs shape expression and identity. This matches with our experience as many find that their feeling of femininity has altered after losing their lashes.
This paper is important because it confirms what we have long observed in practice – bimatoprost is not simply a cosmetic enhancer, but a supportive therapy in cancer survivorship care, with tangible benefits for confidence and quality of life.
The study can be found here: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2950198925000431
Even when hair regrows, it can look different. Some clients notice their lashes or brows are:
Thinner or sparser than before.
A different colour (sometimes lighter, sometimes darker).
A different texture (curlier, or conversely poker straight).
We had one client who recalled that her lashes always had a natural curl before chemotherapy. When her eyelashes grew back they were completely straight, and she bought an eyelash curler for the first time in her life! These changes can be a surprise but our body’s remarkable recovery process can bring many changes.
Eyelash and eyebrow loss after chemotherapy can feel deeply personal and often distressing. At Opti Laboratories, we combine medical knowledge with years of experience helping clients in exactly this situation. We know the science, but we also understand the emotions behind these changes.
If you are dealing with eyelash loss from chemotherapy or eyebrow loss after treatment, and want to explore safe and effective ways to support regrowth, please get in touch with our team. We are here to help you regain not only your lashes and brows but also your confidence.
Wirta D, Baumann L, Bruce S, Ahluwalia G, Weng E, Daniels S. Safety and Efficacy of Bimatoprost for Eyelash Growth in Postchemotherapy Subjects. J Clin Aesthet Dermatol. 2015 Apr;8(4):11-20. PMID: 26060513; PMCID: PMC4456802. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4456802/
Morris CL, Stinnett S, Woodward J. The role of bimatoprost eyelash gel in chemotherapy-induced madarosis: an analysis of efficacy and safety. Int J Trichology. 2011 Jul;3(2):84-91. doi: 10.4103/0974-7753.90809. PMID: 22223967; PMCID: PMC3250027. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3250027/
Simonetta I. Gaumond, Peyton V. Warp, Rama Abdin, Joaquin J. Jimenez, Efficacy of bimatoprost in treating chemotherapy-induced milphosis: A comprehensive review of randomized controlled trials, JAAD Reviews, Volume 4, 2025, Pages 167-174, ISSN 2950-1989, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jdrv.2025.03.015.
Glaser DA, Hossain P, Perkins W, Griffiths T, Ahluwalia G, Weng E, Beddingfield FC. Long-term safety and efficacy of bimatoprost solution 0·03% application to the eyelid margin for the treatment of idiopathic and chemotherapy-induced eyelash hypotrichosis: a randomized controlled trial. Br J Dermatol. 2015;172(5):1384-94. doi: 10.1111/bjd.13443. Epub 2015 Mar 7. PMID: 25296533; PMCID: PMC4832276. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4832276/