Columnist Susan Snyder: Cancer effort a cut above

Tuesday, Oct. 24, 2000 | 9:39 a.m.

Susan Snyder's column appears Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays. Reach her at snyder@lasvegassun.com or 259-4082.

You can't beat a good $10 haircut.

And if getting one could help find a cure for breast cancer? Well, that's even better. Patricia Andersen certainly thinks so. The 54-year-old hairstylist will join thousands of Regis styling salon clippers across the country Saturday as they cut hair in the company's annual Clip for the Cure.

All proceeds from the $10 cuts will go to the Regis Foundation for Breast Cancer Research, which distributes the money to the Mayo Foundation in Rochester, Minn. The money supports research by three post-doctoral scholars in the Mayo Clinic's tumor biology program.

Andersen, for one, is happy to serve. The stylist at the Galleria mall's Regis Salon is a breast cancer survivor. Her treatment over the past year included eight months of chemotherapy. The cancer is gone. Her hair is growing back and she is looking forward to clipping for a cure this weekend.

"I feel great," Andersen said. "But I never missed a beat. I worked right through it."

Alex Haber, manager of the shop where Andersen works, says he is setting up two chairs in the mall directly in front of his shop to serve those who want haircuts for the benefit. Andersen, Haber and the other stylists will work in shifts from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Andersen says she's taking the first shift.

Haber hopes to cut 40 heads of hair, but more would be fine. He wants to see a big turnout.

"We need all the help we can get," he said.

Lee Baker, who manages the Regis at Meadows mall, said she and her stylists also are participating. And a percentage of the sales of Regis hair care products sold Saturday also will be donated. Nationally, Regis stylists are expected to cut 24,000 heads of hair during the promotion, she said. All Regis shops in the Las Vegas Valley are involved. You can find them in the telephone book.

"The way we look at it, the highest percentage (of stylists or clients) are women. And this seems one of the best ways to give back to the community," Baker said. "We have a couple of people coming in on their day off to do it. I've devoted all day to it."

Baker says in addition to the annual fund-raiser, she saves the leftover locks of customers who come in throughout the year and have their long hair cut short. She donates it to the national "Locks of Love" program, where it's used to create wigs for people who have lost their hair during chemotherapy.

"I think it's important. We are fortunate to have the skills to make people feel good about themselves," Baker said. "If you give a little, you're going to get it back 10 times over."

About 40,800 women will die of breast cancer in the United States this year, according to figures from the American Cancer Society. The society's estimates show 200 Nevada women are expected to succumb to the disease this year.

Andersen is grateful for the second chance she's been given -- a chance that was possible only through ongoing cancer research. The haircuts might cost only $10 a piece. But the projects they support are priceless.

"If you want to know where the money goes," Andersen said, "here I am. You're looking at it."