International Cancer Day: Wig shop in Shanghai helps patients have normal lives

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Cancer is one of the biggest killers in modern society. And treatment for it is still painful. Most go through chemotherapy, which leads to hair loss. But in Shanghai, this small wig shop is helping cancer patients regain their confidence. CGTN's Li Jianhua reports.

Your classic salon. Meticulously trimming and styling hair. Not from a real person, but from a mannequin instead. This is a wig shop and most of its customers are cancer patients.

QIN KANG WIG SHOP OWNER "It is painful for them to shave off their hair – it's excruciating. But if you give them a wig that's exquisitely designed, after that it feels like they are reborn. They feel very confident to see themselves in the mirror."

It's a small shop measuring just 20 square meters. It is rather popular with cancer patients, because it is a safe space for them.

QIN KANG WIG SHOP OWNER "Many patients wouldn't mind showing their bald heads here – they can shave their heads in this little shop, but they wouldn't do so in a hair salon."

The shop also provides other free services, such as lifetime wig maintenance, medication storage, and even the pickup of medical records. But it is not always a rosy situation. Some customers sometimes are not easy to deal with.

QIN KANG WIG SHOP OWNER "Some patients demand they be allowed to jump the queue. If not, they would quarrel with us. At the end of the day, they might leave, saying our service is bad. It happens a lot."

Most of his customers have become his friends, although he might have lost some along the way. But no matter what, Qin has never once thought of giving up on his customers.

LI JIANHUA SHANGHAI "Across the street is a cancer hospital, which often reminds people of death. On this side of the street, this wig shop is helping give patients back a sense of hope in their lives. LJH, CGTN, SHANGHAI."