The Hospital General de Granollers in Barcelona placed their first order with Paxman for a dual scalp cooling system in November 2024. This marks another hospital in Spain to begin offering scalp cooling, adding to the increasing total in one of our growing direct markets, managed by our representative, Begoña Parrado.
The Un Pèl Més Fàcil campaign (A Little Easier in Catalan) coordinated by the hospital aimed to fundraise for the implementation of a Paxman Scalp Cooling System.
Recognising that cancer treatment can have a huge impact on social needs along with emotional, psychological and physical ones, the team at the hospital wanted to be able to offer a more human approach to their oncology treatments.
One of the most feared side-effects of chemotherapy treatment is hair loss, which can lead to problems such as emotional distress, a feeling of losing your identity, low confidence and appearing ill to yourself and everyone around you. The effects of hair loss can be different for everyone.
From a strictly medical point of view, oncologists may argue that the side effects present no serious harm to the patient. However, for someone going through such a challenging process already, the side effect of losing your hair adds another layer of distress and anxiety, which can be prevented. This is what the Hospital General de Granollers wanted to address.
To communicate their goals as part of their campaign, the hospital delivered a funding video in the hopes of raising funds to offer scalp cooling. Speaking to both clinicians and the hospital as well as cancer patients and ex cancer patients, we were delighted to see Begoña herself sharing her own experiences in the video!
Describing her 80% hair retention as the only good thing about her cancer diagnosis, she explained how a head full of hair allowed her to protect her family from further distress and how it gave her the power to decide who she would tell about it.
“For me, one of the things I valued most about not losing my hair was being able to protect my family from this devastating visual impact and being able to live a somewhat normal life…” – Begoña Parrado.
The video is inclusive in its use of oncologists, nurses, patients and ex patients to communicate the difference in quality of life that a scalp cooling machine would give to patients.
Begoña has previously shared her scalp cooling experience and cancer journey with LVR Magazine, shedding light on the psychological impact of hair loss for cancer patients.
Begoña is incredibly passionate about helping spread awareness of scalp cooling and works to implement this treatment into as many Spanish hospitals as possible so that patients across her country can have the same opportunity as she did. Now, patients at Hospital General de Granollers will have that opportunity too.
Scalp cooling technology has been clinically proven to reduce hair loss for many patients undergoing chemotherapy, helping to preserve their sense of identity, their privacy and support their emotional wellbeing. This addition to the Hospital General de Granollers reinforces its commitment to offering comprehensive, humanised and patient-centred care.
The Un Pèl Més Fàcil campaign’s success is a testament to the power of community-driven initiatives and the generosity of the Spanish public. Paxman extends its heartfelt gratitude to all those who contributed to this campaign and to the hospital for embracing this technology with compassion at the centre of their motivations.
This isn’t the first time that scalp cooling has been offered through fundraising activities and is sometimes a route to implementation of a centre’s first scalp cooling machine. Many NHS Trusts in the UK have used fundraising and charities too to obtain their first scalp cooling machine. The Un Pèl Més Fàcil by Hospital General de Granollers is a perfect example of a successful campaign and an inspiration to other centres.
The order for the scalp cooling system has been placed as a result of this campaign and will be manufactured before the end of the year, ready to start offering treatment from 2025. The team at Hospital General de Granollers will benefit from training from Paxman on how to use the device, best practices and receive continued support.
There is plenty of information on our website explaining how scalp cooling works to prevent chemotherapy-induced alopecia and the features and benefits of the Paxman Scalp Cooling System.
For guidance on how to implement scalp cooling into your cancer centre, contact us here.
