The nonprofit HairToStay is asking salons and barbershops to join its “Cold Rinse Challenge,” a social media initiative supporting its mission to subsidize hair-saving scalp-cooling treatments for cancer patients.
The challenge takes place at the shampoo bowl, where stylists and barbers are asked to take video of their clients ending the experience with a cold rinse, then declaring their support for HairToStay and asking three friends to do the same. The videos would then be shared on social media.
The initiative mimics the “ALS Ice Bucket Challenge” that went viral in 2014 and raised more than $115 million worldwide for research and support of patients diagnosed with the motor neuron disease.
It’s part of HairToStay’s “Chill for a Cause Campaign” raising funds and awareness for the 501(c)3 organization, which leads the way in making scalp-cooling treatments more accessible to patients undergoing chemotherapy.
Scalp cooling is a simple but effective way to prevent hair loss during cancer treatment. It involves the patient wearing an FDA-approved “cold cap” while receiving chemo infusions. The cold both restricts blood flow to the hair follicles so they absorb less of the medication, and slows the rate of cellular metabolism — reducing the effect of any medication that is present.
The nonprofit is asking salons and barbershops to join its “HairToStay 1000 Club” and pledge to raise $1K for the nonprofit, as well as providing information and free marketing materials for those wanting to participate in the “Cold Rinse Challenge.”
“When a woman is diagnosed with cancer, one of the first people she turns to is her hairstylist to create a plan — usually a ‘cancer cut’ or a head shave — for when she loses her hair,” the nonprofit says in its call for beauty professionals to join the Cold Rinse Challenge through the end of 2024.
“Now, imagine a world where that’s no longer part of the cancer journey.”