Jan 18, 2008 - 04:05:26 CST
It was a glamour girl's dream: free cosmetics.With names like Chanel, Aveda, Clinique and Mary Kay, it was enough to make a girl swoon over the contents of the red makeup bags.
The second Monday of each month, the red bags are given out by cosmetologist Maureen Wanner. For the next two hours she helped the women go through the contents of the bags, as they gave themselves a makeover with the new cosmetics.
In the conference room of the Bismarck Cancer Center is the latest "Look Good ... Feel Better" program. The women show off new eyeshadow and lipstick and swap stories about cancer treatment. At least for a few hours, the focus is on the powders, lotions and lipsticks.
This time isn't about the free makeup, although it's nice. It's for women who have seen their bodies changed by cancer to feel beautiful.
Cancer treatments can affect skin and hair, Wanner said. It causes dry, patchy skin and sometimes thinning or lost hair. Precautions also need to be taken to protect against sun damage and bacteria. Makeup and makeovers go a long way toward making this happen.
"It has everything to make them feel better,"said Lora Baker, American Cancer Society multidistrict region quality of life lead.
Even more special than the makeover is the camaraderie. Few other people understand the perverse joy of losing leg hair paired with the heartbreak of thinning hair and lost eyelashes.
Kathy Arneson arrived at the Bismarck Cancer Center on Monday wearing a black-and-white knit cap. Her blonde bangs peeked out the front. Underneath the cap her hair is stylishly layered.
It's also thinning from cancer treatments she started recently. She was diagnosed at the beginning of December with lung cancer.
"I was getting extremely tired and I couldn't write anymore," she said. "I would look at my check book register and it was not even readable."
She saw her doctor because of these symptoms, and ended up in the hospital. She hopes to be done with her treatments this spring.
With the cap off, she runs her finger through her hair, then shakes her hands before setting them in front of her. She talks to Wanner about her thinning hair.
Wanner grabbed a strawberry blonde wig in a short, layered cut and gave it to Arneson to try on. With a few adjustments, it gave Arneson a fuller head of hair and the color complimented her skin tone. She turned her head toward the other women in the room for approval.
Wigs, turbans and other head coverings usually complete the makeovers. Monday, the wigs kicked off the session.
The women who come to the sessions are in various stages of treatment. Two women came Monday. Arneson recently began treatment, while LaBette Peterson finished hers Tuesday.
Peterson had a routine mammogram at the end of September. Her doctor found a spot. A biopsy in October showed it was breast cancer. She opted for radiation treatment, foregoing chemotherapy. A 10-year analysis of her cancer showed the chemo treatments only improved her odds of survival by less than 2 percent, she said.
At the end of her treatment, she feels tired, she didn't lose any hair and she managed the dry skin. Now she wonders what to do with the tattooed dot on her chest that was used to guide the machines for the radiation treatment.
Peterson recommends the cosmetology program to other cancer patients, "especially those who are taking chemo. They have more issues and problems than I have had."
Baker wants more licensed cosmetologists for the program. It would mean one class about every three months. Cosmetologists go through a training program before taking on a class. Cosmetologists can contact her at 250-1022.
For more information about the "Look Good ... Feel Better" program, call 800-395-LOOK. It can be done in a group session, like at the cancer center; one-on-one with a cosmetologist, or self-directed.
(Reach reporter Sara Kincaid at 250-8251 or sara.kincaid@bismarcktribune.com.)
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