Dream Hair Salon: Give a haircut, get a smile in return.

Their once glossy, voluminous hair was suddenly cut short to shoulder length, but everyone felt happy because the hair they donated would bring confident smiles to the child cancer patients at the Dream Hair Station.

Seven children received new hairstyles at the Dream Hair Station on October 8th - Photo: NGUYEN HIEN

This event, called Hair Donation Day: Dream Hair Station , was initiated and implemented by the Network for Children with Cancer.

To date, this project has received 3,087 donated hair sets and provided over 150 new hair sets to children undergoing treatment at the National Institute of Hematology and Blood Transfusion and the National Children's Hospital .

Give your hair

People often say, "First comes figure, second comes skin, third comes hair," and hair ranks third in terms of a person's beauty; everyone wants to take care of their appearance. However, young cancer patients have no choice; chemotherapy treatments cause their hair to gradually fall out.

For that reason, the " Dream Hair Station" project was initiated by the Network for Children with Cancer in October 2022. And in October 2023, the second "Dream Hair Station" hair donation event was held at the National Institute of Hematology and Blood Transfusion.

Hair given away in exchange for smiles - Photo: NGUYEN HIEN

From the morning of October 8th, a large number of people came to the hair donation event to wait to donate their hair. Among them were elderly people, women, students, working professionals, and even elementary school children.

Having learned about the hair donation event through her aunt's recommendation, 9-year-old Nguyen Chi Nhat Anh decided to accompany her aunt to the event. Holding the neatly cut hair in her hand, Nhat Anh was very happy to have done something meaningful.

"I want to help children with cancer who have lost their hair to have new hair; I feel so sorry for them," Nhat Anh shared.

Little Nhat Anh is confident in her new look with shoulder-length short hair - Photo: NGUYEN HIEN

The event also featured a special guest, Nguyen Khanh Ngoc (13 years old, from Bac Ninh ), who was a child cancer patient treated at the National Children's Hospital when she was only 18 months old. In 2016, her disease relapsed, but fortunately, after a course of chemotherapy, Ngoc's hair grew back, thicker and more beautiful.

Khánh Ngọc loves her hair more than anyone, but she still decided to cut it short, shoulder-length, to donate it to sick children. She wants to give them more energy and motivation to bravely fight their illnesses.

The hair of little Nguyen Khanh Ngoc (Bac Ninh) before and after donation - Photo: NGUYEN HIEN

Meanwhile, Pham Thuy Ngan, 24 years old (residing in Hoai Duc district, Hanoi ), decided to participate in the event immediately after seeing the announcement about the Hair Donation Day organized by the National Institute of Hematology and Blood Transfusion the evening before the event.

"I've been growing this hair for almost two years, and I'm quite sad to have to cut it because it holds so many memories for me. But today, with 40cm of hair donated, I hope it will help some children have new hair," Thuy Ngan said happily.

The hair donation event also provided an opportunity for child patients to draw pictures and make bracelets - Photo: NGUYEN HIEN

Change your smile

With her new hairstyle, Pham Van Anh, a child patient at the National Institute of Hematology and Blood Transfusion, seems completely transformed, more confident and radiant. Van Anh still vividly remembers the day she discovered she had leukemia, August 23, 2022.

"I found out I had cancer and had to undergo chemotherapy. At first, I had no hair, and I was very sad… But seeing other children in the same situation as me, and how they managed to do it, I also tried my best to get treatment so I could go to school, play, and spend more time with my family."

"I'm so happy to have new hair. Because this new hairstyle will make me more confident and determined, giving me more motivation to fight the disease," Van Anh said, her voice choked with emotion.

Hundreds of hair donations have been made at the Dream Hair Donation Station - Photo: NGUYEN HIEN

Ms. Hoang Dieu Thuan, the founder of the Network for Children with Cancer and the initiator of the Dream Hair Station project, hopes that new hair will help young cancer patients feel more confident to go to school and play while waiting for their hair to grow back.

"We are so happy to receive thanks and smiles from the children. I want to tell them that hair that falls out can grow back. Please rest assured about the treatment; leave the new hair to us," Ms. Thuan shared.

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