Regaining confidence

Regaining confidence

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Italian-Chilean hair stylist Marcelo Avatte says the pain he felt when his son lost his hair during cancer treatment motivated him to start donating natural hair wigs to children undergoing chemotherapy.

Since 2009, he has watched more than 300 young patients regain their confidence and self-esteem thanks to their new head of hair, in a country where customised wigs are an unaffordable luxury for many sufferers.

. SANTIAGO, Chile. REUTERS/Rodrigo Garrido

Reuters photographer Rodrigo Garrido captured the change in the girls and women the moment they tried on their wigs for the first time and began to style their hair.

“I can feel the cool wind in my hair as I used to before,” 14-year-old Isidora Serrano, pictured above, said after she received her wig and walked out of the hospital. “I feel so good.”

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Slideshow

Alexandra Munoz, 5, who lost her hair during to chemotherapy to treat a malignant brain tumour, climbs stairs in the cancer ward of the Luis Calvo Mackenna Hospital.
. SANTIAGO, Chile. REUTERS/Rodrigo Garrido

Alexandra Munoz, 5, who lost her hair during to chemotherapy to treat a malignant brain tumour, climbs stairs in the cancer ward of the Luis Calvo Mackenna Hospital.

Munoz undergoes a session of treatment with the help of a nurse.
. SANTIAGO, Chile. REUTERS/Rodrigo Garrido

Munoz undergoes a session of treatment with the help of a nurse.

Oncologist Katherine Kopp speaks with her patients Munoz and 14-year-old Isidora Serrano.
. SANTIAGO, Chile. REUTERS/Rodrigo Garrido

Oncologist Katherine Kopp speaks with her patients Munoz and 14-year-old Isidora Serrano.

Isidora Serrano reacts upon hearing from her doctor the positive results of a blood test during her daily treatment.
. SANTIAGO, Chile. REUTERS/Rodrigo Garrido

Isidora Serrano reacts upon hearing from her doctor the positive results of a blood test during her daily treatment.

Hair stylist Marcelo Avatte blow dries the hair of Pamela Matus before she allows him to cut it and donate it towards a natural hair wig for a girl undergoing chemotherapy.
. Vina del Mar, Chile. REUTERS/Rodrigo Garrido

Hair stylist Marcelo Avatte blow dries the hair of Pamela Matus before she allows him to cut it and donate it towards a natural hair wig for a girl undergoing chemotherapy.

Matus holds locks of her hair as Avatte notes its characteristics.
. Vina del Mar, Chile. REUTERS/Rodrigo Garrido

Matus holds locks of her hair as Avatte notes its characteristics.

Workers Edith Marfil (left), Marcela Reyes (centre) and Rosa Salgado make natural hair wigs to be donated to girls undergoing chemotherapy, at Avatte’s workshop.
. SANTIAGO, Chile. REUTERS/Rodrigo Garrido

Workers Edith Marfil (left), Marcela Reyes (centre) and Rosa Salgado make natural hair wigs to be donated to girls undergoing chemotherapy, at Avatte’s workshop.

Workers Edith Marfil (left) and Marcela Reyes make natural hair wigs.
. SANTIAGO, Chile. REUTERS/Rodrigo Garrido

Workers Edith Marfil (left) and Marcela Reyes make natural hair wigs.

Marifil makes a natural hair wig.
. SANTIAGO, Chile. REUTERS/Rodrigo Garrido

Marifil makes a natural hair wig.

Natural hair wigs made by Avatte are displayed on mannequins before being delivered to girls undergoing cancer treatment
. Vina del Mar, Chile. REUTERS/Rodrigo Garrido

Natural hair wigs made by Avatte are displayed on mannequins before being delivered to girls undergoing cancer treatment

Five-year-old Munoz plays with her new natural hair wig after it was fitted for the first time in the cancer ward of the Luis Calvo Mackenna Hospital.
. SANTIAGO, Chile. REUTERS/Rodrigo Garrido

Five-year-old Munoz plays with her new natural hair wig after it was fitted for the first time in the cancer ward of the Luis Calvo Mackenna Hospital.

Avatte prepares to fit a natural hair wig on Serrano in the cancer ward of the Luis Calvo Mackenna Hospital.
. SANTIAGO, Chile. REUTERS/Rodrigo Garrido

Avatte prepares to fit a natural hair wig on Serrano in the cancer ward of the Luis Calvo Mackenna Hospital.

Avatte prepares to fit the wig on Serrano.
. SANTIAGO, Chile. REUTERS/Rodrigo Garrido

Avatte prepares to fit the wig on Serrano.

Serrano walks on the street for the first time after receiving a natural hair wig.
. SANTIAGO, Chile. REUTERS/Rodrigo Garrido

Serrano walks on the street for the first time after receiving a natural hair wig.

"Their faces were magically transformed, smiles emerged and their natural femininity took over."
Rodrigo Garrido, Reuters Photographer

Marcelo Avatte, a renowned Italian-Chilean hair stylist, could have never imagined that his own son would motivate him to start making and donating natural hair wigs for children who suffer from cancer.

Avatte came up with the idea in February 2006, while watching his four-year-old son Vittorio undergo treatment for acute lymphoblastic leukemia at the cancer ward of the Luis Calvo Mackenna Hospital in Santiago.

He was moved by the sight of young girls losing their hair to chemotherapy. He saw the anguish they suffered and the way it affected their fight for recovery.

"I could see the pain, in particular of the girls who lost their hair, during treatment, how it affected their self-esteem and the depression they fell into. That was what motivated me to begin this project with my son."

Avatte says just seeing the smile that a natural wig brought to the a patient’s face when they started to comb through it as if it were their own hair was enough for him to continue the project.

"That was when I realised that the child’s outlook on life and recovery were greater with the wig than if they continued to hide their head with scarves and," he said.

He recalls the pain he felt when Vittorio lost his hair: "That was the most painful wig I ever made."

Today, Vittorio is a healthy young boy and fully recovered, and Avatte's project is as strong as ever.

As I photographed this project, I witnessed the immediate change in girls and women from the moment they wore their wigs and styled their hair.

Their faces were magically transformed, smiles emerged and their natural femininity took over. They straightened their posture as they walked and raised their heads, shedding off that downcast appearance they had before.

Isidora Serrano, one of the patients I photographed before and after she received her wig, walked out of the hospital with her new hair and said: "I can feel the cool wind in my hair as I used to before. I feel so good."

Another younger patient, Alexandra, close to turning 5 and recovering from surgery to remove a malignant brain tumour, played with her new head of hair by turning her head from side to side, swinging her hair across her face.

Avatte has donated more than 300 wigs since 2009, by campaigning on TV and radio to get women of all ages to donate their hair for a noble cause - a natural hair wig in Chile costs about $670, and many patients cannot afford them.

All that is needed to make a natural wig is healthy hair at least 35 cm (13.8 inches) long that is not overly dry and has no split ends. Neither colour nor waviness is important, but it mustn't be tangled. At least three donors are needed for each wig.

Everything is handmade, with special dedication from the staff who know that the wigs are for young girls with cancer, and that this will help their self-esteem and recovery.

Avatte said that for girls around the age of 13 and older it's much more frustrating than boys to see their hair fall out after under than three months of treatment.

They feel excluded and will often isolate themselves from society once they feel that others are staring at them.

For him, that’s the moment when the wig can make a difference.