Chemotherapy's Impact: How It Affects Your Fingernails

Chemotherapy can disrupt the growth cycles of new cells in your body, including nail growth. During treatment, it's not unusual for your nails to bend or break more easily. Once treatment is done, it can take 6 to 12 months for your fingernails to grow back out to normal.

Chemotherapy can disrupt the growth cycles of new cells in your body

During chemotherapy treatment, it’s not unusual for your nails to bend or break more easily. Nails can grow weak and brittle during chemotherapy. They may also split from the tissue that holds nails in place (onycholysis). Less often, nails may fall off after several rounds of treatment. Some chemotherapy medications, such as taxanes (Taxotere), are more likely to result in nail loss than others.

Approximately 6 to 12 months after finishing treatment, your natural fingernails and toenails will start to regrow. This cycle of regrowth doesn’t happen overnight. According to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, it takes 6 months to regrow a fingernail and a year and a half to regrow a toenail. Once your treatment is done, it can take about six to 12 months for your fingernails to grow back out to normal. Toenails can take longer—sometimes up to a year. In some cases, nails never return to how they were before chemo.

Most changes are temporary and you can do things to prevent or reduce nail damage. If you’re going through chemo and noticing changes to your fingernails and toenails, what you’re experiencing is not out of the ordinary.

Chemotherapy drugs may target fast-growing body cells, such as cells that control hair or nail growth

During chemotherapy treatment, it’s not unusual for your nails to bend or break more easily. The keratin-rich cells that make up your skin and nails can be especially affected by this. Nails can grow weak and brittle during chemotherapy. They may also split from the tissue that holds nails in place (onycholysis). Less often, nails may fall off after several rounds of treatment. Some chemotherapy medications, such as taxanes (Taxotere), are more likely to result in nail loss than others.

Approximately 6 to 12 months after finishing treatment, your natural fingernails and toenails will start to regrow. This cycle of regrowth doesn’t happen overnight. According to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, it takes 6 months to regrow a fingernail and a year and a half to regrow a toenail. In the meantime, you may notice one or more of the following symptoms. During chemotherapy treatment, it’s not unusual for your nails to bend or break more easily.

Once your treatment is done, it can take about six to 12 months for your fingernails to grow back out to normal. Toenails can take longer—sometimes up to a year. In some cases, nails never return to how they were before chemo. Nails can grow weak and brittle during chemotherapy. They may also split from the tissue that holds nails in place (onycholysis). Less often, nails may fall off after several rounds of treatment. Some chemotherapy medications, such as taxanes (Taxotere), are more likely to result in nail loss than others.

If you’re going through chemo and noticing changes to your fingernails and toenails, what you’re experiencing is not out of the ordinary. In this article, we look at how chemo medications affect the texture and appearance of your nails, why this happens, and how you can best take care of your nails during this time. Chemotherapy can disrupt the growth cycles of new cells in your body.

Nails can grow weak and brittle during chemotherapy

Chemotherapy can disrupt the growth cycles of new cells in your body, including the keratin-rich cells that make up your skin and nails. This can result in nail loss, brittleness, and weakness during chemotherapy treatment. Nails may also split from the tissue that holds nails in place (onycholysis). Less often, nails may fall off after several rounds of treatment.

Some chemotherapy medications, such as taxanes (Taxotere), are more likely to result in nail loss than others. Approximately 6 to 12 months after finishing treatment, your natural fingernails and toenails will start to regrow. This cycle of regrowth doesn’t happen overnight. According to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, it takes 6 months to regrow a fingernail and a year and a half to regrow a toenail.

During chemotherapy treatment, it’s not unusual for your nails to bend or break more easily. Most changes are temporary and you can do things to prevent or reduce nail damage. Once your treatment is done, it can take about six to 12 months for your fingernails to grow back out to normal. Toenails can take longer—sometimes up to a year. In some cases, nails never return to how they were before chemo.

Nails may fall off after several rounds of treatment

Chemotherapy can disrupt the growth cycles of new cells in your body, including the keratin-rich cells that make up your skin and nails. During chemotherapy, it's not unusual for your nails to bend or break more easily. Nails can grow weak and brittle during chemotherapy. They may also split from the tissue that holds nails in place (onycholysis). Less often, nails may fall off after several rounds of treatment. Some chemotherapy medications, such as taxanes (Taxotere), are more likely to result in nail loss than others.

If you’re going through chemo and noticing changes to your fingernails and toenails, what you’re experiencing is not out of the ordinary. Most changes are temporary and you can do things to prevent or reduce nail damage. Once your treatment is done, it can take about six to 12 months for your fingernails to grow back out to normal. Toenails can take longer—sometimes up to a year. In some cases, nails never return to how they were before chemo.

Chemotherapy drugs may also target fast-growing body cells, such as cells that control hair or nail growth. This can result in a person developing certain side effects affecting their nails.

During chemotherapy treatment, it’s not unusual for your nails to bend or break more easily. The keratin-rich cells that make up your skin and nails can be especially affected by this.

Once your treatment is done, it can take about six to 12 months for your fingernails to grow back

Chemotherapy can disrupt the growth cycles of new cells in your body. Chemotherapy drugs may also target fast-growing body cells, such as cells that control hair or nail growth. During chemotherapy treatment, it’s not unusual for your nails to bend or break more easily. Nails can grow weak and brittle during chemotherapy. They may also split from the tissue that holds nails in place (onycholysis). Less often, nails may fall off after several rounds of treatment. Some chemotherapy medications, such as taxanes (Taxotere), are more likely to result in nail loss than others.

Approximately 6 to 12 months after finishing treatment, your natural fingernails and toenails will start to regrow. This cycle of regrowth doesn’t happen overnight. According to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, it takes 6 months to regrow a fingernail and a year and a half to regrow a toenail. In some cases, nails never return to how they were before chemo. Most changes are temporary and you can do things to prevent or reduce nail damage.

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