There are not printed guidelines that you need to include with your claim as the Guidelines are licensed content and can not be reproduced. However, if you refer to them, payers do have access to the NCCN content. So it is sufficient to just say "scalp cooling is listed in the NCCN guidelines." If you are able to attach a document with your claim, we suggest putting the following information on a separate page:
Scalp cooling is clinically recommended:
NCCN® Recommendation
• Scalp cooling is a Category 2A recommendation to reduce the incidence of chemotherapy-induced alopecia for patients receiving chemo treatments
• National Comprehensive Cancer Network® (NCCN®) Clinical Practice Guidelines in oncology
‒Breast cancer (2025)
‒Ovarian cancer, other gynecologic cancers, including fallopian tube and primary peritoneal cancers (2025)
ONS Recommendation
• Scalp cooling is recommended to minimize chemotherapy-induced alopecia
• Oncology Nursing Society (ONS) Guidelines™ for Cancer Treatment-Related Skin Toxicity (effective 2020)
Key publications
Rugo HS, Klein P, Melin SA, et al. Association Between Use of a Scalp Cooling Device and Alopecia After Chemotherapy for Breast Cancer. JAMA. 2017;317(6):606–614. doi:10.1001/jama.2016.21038
Rugo HS, Melin SA, Voigt J. Scalp cooling with adjuvant/neoadjuvant chemotherapy for breast cancer and the risk of scalp metastases: systematic review and meta-analysis. Breast Cancer Res Treat. 2017 Jun;163(2):199-205. doi: 10.1007/s10549-017-4185-9. Epub 2017 Mar 8. PMID: 28275922; PMCID: PMC5410200.
Munzone, E., Bagnardi, V., Campennì, G. et al. Preventing chemotherapy-induced alopecia: a prospective clinical trial on the efficacy and safety of a scalp-cooling system in early breast cancer patients treated with anthracyclines. Br J Cancer 121, 325–331 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41416-019-0520-8