How a cancer diagnosis led this celebrity hairstylist to find a solution for hair loss

Her hair has grown back better than ever

Lauren Mackellar launched Robe Haircare with the aim of helping people fall back in love with their hair. Image: Supplied

When Melbourne hairstylist Lauren Mackellar lost all of her hair after undergoing chemotherapy, her doctors said it would likely never grow back. So, she set about formulating a solution.

When it comes to our hair, it’s safe to say most of us - regardless of gender or age - are pretty attached to it.

Whether it’s growing it, colouring it or styling it, there’s a lot of time and effort spent primping and preening our locks. 

No one knows this more than hairdressers. As well as tending to our tresses, they’re also quasi-therapists, lending an ear to their clients as a confidant as well as a hairstylist, ensuring we walk out of the salon feeling a million bucks.

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After the better part of two decades in the industry, it’s a reality Lauren Mackellar is well attuned to.

As a highly sought-after hairstylist, Mackellar spent more than 16 years listening to her clients make apologies for their hair – lamenting that it was too thin, too coarse, or too unmanageable. 

“They were dealing with everything from age-related textural changes to hair loss due to stress, hormones and health issues,” she tells Body+Soul. 

And while there are numerous products available that ensure your hair is cosmetically clean, she struggled to recommend anything with long-term benefits. 

“I couldn’t find any products that I felt confident in recommending to my clients that could actively support them through the hair changes that they - and myself included - were experiencing.”

Mackellar was the go-to hairstylist for a number of the country’s biggest celebrities, including Zoë Foster Blake and Olympia Valance, and in 2017 she relocated to Los Angeles where she quickly nabbed several high-profile gigs, styling hair for the likes of Kylie Cosmetics, Glossier and Rare Beauty. As incredible as it was, the workload took its toll.

“I’d been experiencing excessive hair loss due to stress, so when I couldn’t find any hair products to help me with my own hair, I started looking for alternatives. I became interested in natural, Chinese medicine and Ayurvedic philosophies, and the natural ingredients they’ve each used for hair health for hundreds of years.” 

Upon returning home to Melbourne in 2020, she began formulating her own line of active hair essentials, Robe Haircare. 

“I had great results at home by ingesting sea moss and nettle as teas. I would bulk-buy the ingredients and brew my own concoction. I recommended the ingredients to my clients at the time, but I also knew from experience that a product with those ingredients would be even more effective if it could be applied on the scalp at the root of the problem.”

She began formulating the products she had always looked for - a range of active haircare essentials that worked to achieve longer, stronger, healthier hair for all hair types. 

The Robe Haircare range is made up of targeted solutions. Image: Supplied

However, halfway through the process, she received a devastating cancer diagnosis, which required treatment that would cause her to lose her hair. After dealing with chronic migraines, she took herself to the emergency department, where they diagnosed her with a brain tumour. Just 32 hours later, she was in surgery to have it removed.

“While my amazing neurosurgeon was able to remove the tumour, it was found to be a very rare, stage three tumour called a PXA, which is extremely unpredictable.” 

This diagnosis meant she had to start radiation and chemotherapy immediately, which lead to her inevitable hair loss. 

“Even though I was prepared by my doctors for my hair to fall out, it was still an extremely distressing experience. It happens very suddenly, and then the realisation hits you that you can no longer hide what you're going through. I wore beanies in public for months because I didn’t like my scar being on show to the world.”

This difficult time brought her on a whole new journey with both her hair and her identity as a hairstylist, as she adapted to the rapid changes in her locks. Although doctors cautioned her that there was a high chance her hair would never grow back, Mackellar relied on her newly-formulated products all the same.

“My whole life had centred around hair to that point, and I knew the effect our hair has on how we feel about ourselves. So, even though I knew I was lucky to be alive, it still felt like a huge blow to both my confidence and my identity.”

She began using samples from the range just after starting chemotherapy. Incredibly, Mackellar noticed hair growth within a few weeks. Fast forward a few months and she now has a full head of hair she says is thicker and healthier than it was prior to her brain tumour.

“It was very fortunate timing that I'd developed the formulas before my diagnosis, and a huge facet of The Tonic is to promote hair growth and overall hair health. Even though I'd been told my hair wasn’t going to grow and I was spraying the scalp treatment on my completely smooth head, I knew how incredible the formula was because I'd been using it when I'd had hair, so I had faith that if anything was going to work, it was going to be this.”

After three years in development, Robe Haircare officially launched this week, with The Tonic set to be a best-seller, alongside the rest of the topical and ingestible products in the range.

Each formula has been created to perform as a specialised, targeted treatment, made up of ingredients like sea moss and nettle which had helped the hairstylist years prior.

“I know that we all have frustrations with our hair. Over time, even the thought of washing and caring for it can feel negative. I wanted to create a beautiful experience, to help strengthen the relationship people have with their hair. Ultimately, I want to provide people with products that actively help them to feel great about themselves and fall back in love with their hair again.”

Originally published as How a cancer diagnosis led this celebrity hairstylist to find a solution for hair loss