Antibody-Drug Conjugate Induced Hair Loss Responds to Minoxidil: A Case Report

Abstract

Antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) represent a novel class of targeted cancer therapies that commonly result in alopecia as an adverse effect. There is limited research regarding methods to prevent or treat alopecia for patients treated with ADCs. Minoxidil may be used to treat hair loss due to multiple etiologies, but is not conventionally recommended to patients actively undergoing cancer treatment. We present the case of a 64-year-old female with stage IV ER+/HER2 low-expressing breast cancer who experienced extensive treatment-induced alopecia after initiating fam-trastuzumab deruxtecan followed by sacituzumab govitecan who achieved significant hair regrowth with oral minoxidil while continuing ADC therapy. This case highlights the potential for oral minoxidil to facilitate hair regrowth during ADC therapy, suggesting that it may represent a valuable treatment for ADC-induced alopecia.