Shiseido Presents Benefits of Online Consultation on Appearance Care for People with Cancer at 8th Annual Meeting of the Japanese Association of Supportive Care in Cancer

~Creating a society where people can continue to live their lives as themselves even after a cancer diagnosis~

Japanese

Shiseido Company, Limited (“Shiseido”), in collaboration with St. Luke’s International Hospital, has verified that online consultation on appearance care provides psychosocial support for people with cancerin improving their quality of life (QOL). From Shiseido, Kazuyuki Ikeyama*1, Ph.D., who is also a certified care worker, presented the study results and won an award for excellence at the 8th Annual Meeting of the Japanese Association of Supportive Care in Cancer held on Saturday, June 24, 2023, in Nara Prefecture, Japan. Since 2008, Shiseido has been engaging in addressing appearance changes that occur as a side effect of cancer treatment and expanding its activities globally with the aim of creating a society where people can continue to live their lives as themselves even with a cancer diagnosis.

Background of the study

With the advances in treatment technology and early detection, the number of cancer patients who continue to work while undergoing medical treatment is growing. Even so, it has been reported that appearance changes (such as skin discoloration, hair loss, etc.) due to the side effect of treatment affect their everyday lives. Today in Japan, it is said that one in two people will get cancer and efforts to improve the QOL of cancer patients/survivors through appearance care are attracting attention. The Phase Four Basic Plan to Promote Cancer Control Programs, which was approved by the Cabinet in March 2023, also states the need for appearance care.

Details of the presentation

In a face-to-face online format, Shiseido beauty consultants provided approximately 60 minutes of makeup consultation (mainly for skin discoloration and loss of eyelashes and eyebrows) to 41 breast cancer patients in their 30s to 60s who had concerns about the changes in their appearance as they were undergoing chemotherapy. The team, in collaboration with St. Luke’s International Hospital, conducted a questionnaire based QOL evaluation before and one week after the consultation session. Results revealed that the online format helped lower the “difficulty of asking for advice,” and the consultation on appearance care seems to have had psychological effects, reducing negative emotions and helping the patients feel more positive. Online consultation on appearance care is thus considered to be effective, offering psychosocial support for cancer patients who have concerns about the changes in their appearance from cancer treatment.

＜ Results＞
When it came to skincare routine frequency, the breast cancer patients who participated in the study (41 participants: hereinafter “study participants”) answered that they apply skincare almost every day (85.4%), when going out or meeting people (9.8%), and almost never (4.9%), whereas for makeup application frequency, they answered that they apply makeup almost every day (23.9%), when going out or meeting people (63.4%), and almost never (7.3%). The treatment-related appearance changes cited by more than half of the study participants were hair loss on the head (82.9%), nail changes (70.7%), loss of eyebrows (63.4%), loss of eyelashes (61.0%), and skin discoloration on the face (58.5%) (Figure 1).

Of the study participants, 61% felt uncomfortable discussing their concerns about appearance changes and 43.9% had never discussed them with anyone. On the other hand, 80.5% felt “comfortable” discussing these concerns via the internet. The benefits of online consultation on appearance care (multiple choice) included “convenient as I can participate in a session from home (94.7%),”“can participate in a session without worrying about what other people think (76.3%),” and “less physically demanding (57.9%)” (Figure 2). It was also confirmed that the online consultation helped them resolve their concerns.

When it came to everyday life changes (multiple choice), which the study participants experienced after one week of performing the tips themselves following the online consultation on appearance care, they mentioned various changes in feelings and behaviors, such as “have become more positive (65.7%),”“more interested in fashion (44.7%),” and “look forward to going out more (26.9%)” (Figure 3).

Figure 1. Appearance changes due to treatment

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Figure 2. Benefits of online consultation on appearance care

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Figure 3. Everyday life changes after receiving the online consultation on appearance care

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Psychological state changes and QOL before and after receiving the online consultation

When it came to subjective evaluations after receiving the online consultation on appearance care, degrees of satisfaction on skin condition (skin dryness, dullness, and spots) and makeup application (covering skin discoloration, drawing eyebrows and eyelashes) increased significantly, and the scores on “emotion” in the dermatology QOL index*2 (degree of negative emotions over skin concerns) also improved significantly. The self-efficacy of cancer patients (emotional control efficacy) also improved significantly, while their scores*3 on negative emotions such as “confusion/bewilderment,” “fatigue/inertia,” and “tension/anxiety”decreased significantly (Figure 4).

Figure 4: Changes in mood and emotional state before and after receiving the online consultation

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Reference: Shiseido’s Appearance Care for People with Cancer

Throughout our history, Shiseido is continuing to make social and research efforts for well-being by harnessing the power of beauty. The Shiseido Life Quality Beauty initiative advocates the power of beauty as instrumental in mental and physical well-being, as well as social well-being*4, and that it helps everyone to feel empowered, confident, and free to be themselves, regardless of age, health condition, or disabilities. Most importantly, in addition to the initiatives that help improve the QOL of people who have concerns about the changes of their appearance from cancer treatment, the Shiseido Life Quality Makeup also runs supportive activities for those who have serious skin concerns such as burn marks, scars, birthmarks, vitiligo both domestically and overseas. In Japan, the Shiseido Life Quality Makeup holds Appearance Care Seminars targeting medical professionals and people with cancer to address specific beauty concerns and appearance changes (skin discoloration, loss of eyebrows and eyelashes, etc.), which occurs as a side effect of cancer treatment. These seminars are presented by specialists called “social area leaders” and “social area partners” who are assigned nationwide to strengthen responses to local social issues such as aging and community revitalization. At the same time, the Shiseido Life Quality Beauty Center started offering, on a trial basis, online consultation in 2023 to make services more accessible. From July 2023, the center is poised to increase the number of days it operates, creating more opportunities for consultations. The center has also launched new services, such as wig consultation, in a bid to address a wider range of concerns about appearance changes. With these efforts, Shiseido strives to create a society where people can live their lives as themselves without having to struggle alone.

Shiseido Life Quality Beauty Center in Japan
＜Information on the change of operating days from July, 2023＞
In addition to Tuesdays and Wednesdays, Thursdays will be open for counselling.
[Reservation desk hours]
・ 13:00 ~ 16:00 on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays
[Consultation schedule]
・ Tuesdays and Wednesdays: 13:30 ~ 14:30, 15:30 ~ 16:30
・ Thursdays: 11:00 ~ 12:00, 14:00 ~ 15:00, 16:00 ~ 17:00
*Consultation will not be available on national holidays, year-end and New Year holidays, and summer holidays.

*1 Kazuyuki Ikeyama, Ph.D./Certified care worker. Specialized in cosmetic therapy. Acquired a degree (Medicine) from the Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University and qualified as a care worker while in graduate school. After joining Shiseido in 2005, he engaged in cosmetic therapy research and verified the effects of makeup application from the medical and nursing perspectives with the elderly at about 200 nursing facilities. Also, from the perspective of makeup and beauty for the elderly, since 2014, by leveraging his experience and expertise, he has also been involved in the development of beauty-related services for the elderly and works on solving social issues such as helping the elderly go out and extend their healthy life expectancy. Since 2020, he has been conducting verification and fact-finding surveys on the effects of appearance care for cancer patients who have concerns about the changes in their appearance from the side effect of treatment. Membership in academic institutions: Japan Socio-Gerontological Society, Society for Applied Gerontology-Japan, Japan Association of Supportive Care in Cancer, Japan Psycho-Oncology Society
*2 Dermatology Life Quality Index, Skindex-16, issued by Medical Professional Relations Inc.
*3 POMS®2 (Profile of Mood States Second Edition), abbreviated version for adults, published by Kaneko Shobo.
*4“Social well-being”: State of being able to maintain connections with society and people