AdventHealth oncology nurse Margaret Potter has shaved her head during Breast Cancer Awareness Month for the past twelve years to support her patients experiencing hair loss, a common side effect of chemotherapy. Potter says hair loss can be particularly emotional for women, and she doesn’t want them to feel ashamed.
“The day after I shaved my head for the first time, I went back, and one of my patients said, ‘Oh my gosh, I can shave my head now! Will you shave my head for me before you leave today?”
Potter works in the AdventHealth Cancer Center in Kansas City, Missouri. About 80-90 patients are treated in its infusion center daily. She says she sees firsthand how hair loss from chemotherapy has affected them.
“When my patients hear that they are going to lose their hair, it’s a variety of emotions. It’s a lot of tears and anxiety in the beginning,” says Potter.
She says the societal standards that place value on women’s hair have been a heavy burden for some of her patients and she’s been shaving her head 12 years to show them they’re not alone.
Daily Nurse honors Potter as the Nurse of the Week for the caring and compassion she shares with her patients during an incredibly emotional time by encouraging them to embrace their hair loss and help combat the stigma surrounding it.
Potter participates in Shave to Save, an annual fundraiser benefiting the American Cancer Society’s Hope Lodge of Kansas City.
“I look at my cancer patients when they lose their hair, and I see their strength, beauty, and courage, so I love to go out and champion that,” says Potter.
“When they see somebody that doesn’t have hair, it’s not always bad. A lot of the time, it is bad, but just go up and say, ‘Gosh, I don’t know your story. I hope you’re doing well.’ Just have that extra little bit of compassion because they are going through a lot.”
Potter says she plans to shave her head again next year at the Shave to Save fundraiser on April 26, 2024.
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