CAIRO: When cancer patient Merhan Khalil had a bone marrow transplant and chemotherapy in 2012, her hair started to fall out in the shower. On Saturday she joined a Cairo workshop that teaches female cancer patients how to conceal signs of cancer treatment.
“It helps a lot mentally ... to feel beautiful and to feel that the medicine didn’t change us,” said Khalil, 46, who suffers from multiple myeloma, a blood plasma cancer.
The workshop is part of a program already in operation in Lebanon and the UAE called “Be Beautiful” that will be launched this month in at least seven hospitals in Egypt. It will offer women cancer patients makeup tips as well as mental health support and advice about nutrition.
“When the cancer patient feels that she is beautiful and when she gets proper nutrition that will have a positive effect on her mental state and that strengthens her immune system,” said Hanadi el-Imam, founder of the Hoda el-Imam Foundation, which is organizing the workshops.
She said the aim is to offer the workshops in five Egyptian governorates within a year.
Faten Fawzi, a breast cancer patient who was among a group of five patients learning how to paint their eyebrows and apply conditioner on dry skin at the Cairo Marriott Hotel, said she felt like her hair was burned after chemo.
“I went to my hairdresser and he shaved it off completely and I was devastated and started crying,” Fawzi, 46, told Reuters.
“But after that I put on a chic wig that looked like my hair and you couldn’t tell at all that I had cancer.”
While she recently got rid of the wig, Fawzi said she still paints her eyebrows and cares about her makeup routine because it makes her feel better.
Ghada Salah who was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2013, said she started to experiment with different wigs and colorful hats after she lost her hair to chemotherapy.
“I didn’t want to look sick,” she said. “I didn’t want people to think ‘poor her, she has cancer.’”
The organizers hope to serve 5,000 Egyptian women in the first year, said Dina Omar, a cardiologist and one of the founders of Be Beautiful.
Globally, cancer is responsible for one in six deaths, according to the World Health Organization. Approximately 70 percent of deaths from cancer happen in low and middle-income countries, WHO said.
Women cancer patients learn makeup tips in new Egypt workshop
Women cancer patients learn makeup tips in new Egypt workshop
- Workshop is part of a program already in operation in Lebanon and the UAE called “Be Beautiful”
- Will be launched this month in at least seven hospitals in Egypt
Repossi taps May Calamawy for latest campaign
DUBAI: Italian jewelry label Repossi has tapped Egyptian-Palestinian Hollywood star May Calamawy to star in its Ramadan 2026 campaign.
The campaign, which was shot in Sharjah in the UAE, features Calamawy showing off pieces by the Paris-headquartered label that is known for taking inspiration from architecture and modern art.
Shot inside Zaha Hadid Architects’ BEEAH Headquarters in Sharjah, Calamawy can be seen wearing signature pieces from the Blast and Serti Sur Vide collection, as well as other classic collections by the brand.
“Celebrating Repossi Savoir-Faire, Heritage and Architectural Poetry (sic),” the actress captioned the campaign video, which she shared with her 354,000 followers on Instagram.
Calamawy is known for her roles in the US Netflix series “Ramy” and “Moon Knight” (2022), where she plays dual characters Layla El-Faouly and the Scarlet Scarab.
She made headlines in late 2024 when almost all her scenes were cut from Ridley Scott’s “Gladiator II,” with fans taking to social media to complain.
Her casting in the film was first announced in May 2023.
At the time, Deadline reported that Scott had cast Calamawy after a lengthy search, writing: “While many of the leading roles were straight offers, Scott wanted to do a similar search he did for the (Paul) Mescal part for the role that Calamawy ultimately landed.”
In January, the star took to Instagram to promote her latest project, which hits theaters in April.
“The Mummy,” a new feature from award-winning Irish writer and director Lee Cronin, will be released on April 17 and features Calamawy alongside Mexican actress Veronica Falcon, Jack Reynor, and Laia Costa.
The film is produced by Blumhouse, Atomic Monster, and New Line Cinema.
“The young daughter of a journalist disappears into the desert without a trace. Eight years later, the broken family is shocked when she is returned to them, as what should be a joyful reunion turns into a living nightmare,” the film’s official logline reads.
Calamawy is also known for her activism and regularly takes to social media to support charity initiatives raising money and awareness for Gaza.
In December, she promoted the song “Lullaby,” which the Together for Palestine charity is trying to propel to the Christmas No. 1 spot in the UK chart to raise money for the people of Palestine.
