Wig bank to help cancer patients handle hair loss

Exorbitant NHS costs force Agnes into action A BREAST cancer sufferer has launched a service to help chemotherapy patients who cannot afford to buy a wig.

Agnes Lennox has set up a "wig bank" for people to donate unwanted hairpieces, which she will wash and offer for sale at under £20 - or for hire at just £5. A donation from each sale will also be made to the Maggies Centre at the Western General Hospital.

The cheap prices compare with NHS prescription charges ranging from £53.10 for an acrylic wig to £204.90 for a full human hair wig.

The 47-year-old former administrative worker from School Brae in Cramond, who underwent a mastectomy for breast cancer last summer, today hit out at NHS charges for wigs, which she says are a "vital tool" for patients who want to cope with their hair loss.

Ms Lennox, who will run the non-profit business from the Edinburgh Organics food shop in Stockbridge, today said she wanted to help others avoid the expensive trauma of hair loss.

"I was re-diagnosed with breast cancer in August and I was strongly encouraged to treat it with chemotherapy. I was very reluctant because they pulled no punches and said this would lead to me losing my hair," she said.

"I grieved for my hair, just like I grieved for my breast. I tried to replace the hair I had lost by buying a wig that was the same colour.

"It cost me £175, which was a lot of money because I had just been made redundant, but it would be a lot of money for anyone. So I wrote to Health Minister Andy Kerr to ask him how much a wig cost on the NHS. He sent me the prescription charges and I was shocked to discover it would cost so much. That’s when I decided to do something about it."

Ms Lennox said: "A friend from Ireland helped me come to terms with the situation by choosing some crazy-coloured wigs, which added a touch of fun to it all. Then another friend who also had breast cancer told me that she had thrown her old wigs away.

"That’s when I came up with the wig bank idea. Hopefully people will donate unwanted wigs and help people to avoid astronomical NHS costs."

At the moment people are only entitled to a free wig if they are an NHS in-patient when the wig is supplied. Cancer sufferers are also eligible if they or their partner receive certain benefits.

SNP health spokeswoman Shona Robison said the "unfair" prices need to be addressed. "I think this is a very serious issue. Breast cancer patients need all the help they can get at a time when they are most vulnerable," she said. "It’s unfair and it’s something that should be addressed. All credit to Ms Lennox for meeting a need that is not met by the NHS."

A Scottish Executive spokesman said a review of prescription charges for people with chronic health conditions had begun in October.