Safer Skin Products for Cancer Care: Spotlight with Britta Aragon, Author and Founder of CV Skinlabs™

Our Oncology Skin Care expert at the Integrative Cancer Review, Geralyn O’Brien, often recommends the gentle CV Skinlabs™ products for people going through cancer care, so we wanted to provide more information on this company, and their founder, Britta Aragon, a cancer survivor, author and safe skin care expert.

Britta developed CV Skinlabs™ in response to a need for effective and non-toxic skin care solutions.

Britta Aragon developed CV Skinlabs™ in response to a need for effective and non-toxic skin care solutions. She had been diagnosed with Hodgkin’s disease at the age of 16, so she knew what it was to go through cancer treatments and to suffer the resulting side effects on the skin. These include dryness, flaking, thinning, and premature aging effects. Yet, she couldn’t find skin care products that did her much good.

It got even worse when her father was diagnosed with cancer. He suffered even more severe side effects, including a nasty rash on his face. Britta tried products specifically targeted for “sensitive skin,” but they actually made his fragile skin worse. She later discovered they were laden with potentially harmful chemicals linked with irritation, eczema, redness, inflammation, allergic reactions, and even cancer.

After her father passed in 2007, Britta felt a strong desire to prevent others from going through what she and her father had to go through. Driven by a new purpose, she founded Cinco Vidas in 2008, and dedicated the work to her father’s legacy.

Britta explained the name of the company: “After my father was gone, I knew it was my purpose to honor his legacy. Having battled cancer in five different places in his body, five times he renewed his commitment to living. My heritage is Mexican — in Spanish, “Cinco Vidas” means “five lives.” It was the perfect fit.”

In September 2011, Britta published When Cancer Hits, a highly rated guide for the newly diagnosed that covers personal care products, toxic additives, safe skin care routines and many integrative modalities for those diagnosed with cancer. But her dream was to create a skin care line that would address the issue of sensitive, medically treated skin, so she assembled an expert team of leading dermatologists, toxicologists and holistic skincare chemists and developed CV Skinlabs™. The product line launched in March 2012.

“Our mission at CV Skinlabs™ is to provide everyone — including those with sensitive skin, those going through medical treatments, pregnant women, and even babies — healthy, restorative skin care that delivers beauty and safety without compromise. Our products can be used by anyone with complete peace of mind,” said Britta.

“We insist on the utmost in safety, by toxicologically examining and screening all ingredients for any link to irritation, cancer or hormone disruption, but we also conduct results-driven, rigorous clinical testing to be sure that our products perform at the level we expect. The result is a line of products that work like a healthy diet for your skin — full of good-for-you ingredients that actually give your skin what it needs to look and feel its ultimate best.”

Can you tell us about your products and what is special about them, in general and for people diagnosed with cancer?

There are other skin care companies out there that are focusing on natural and plant-based ingredients. What sets us apart is that we care about safety, sensitivity, and efficacy. We understand that a natural product that contains a known allergen is going to cause reactions in some of our customers, and that’s not okay with us. We know that even some natural ingredients are linked with skin irritation, and so they don’t end up in our formulas.

Sensitivity is a growing issue in today’s population — and especially for people going through cancer treatment. We’re surrounded by more chemicals than we ever have been before in history, and our bodies are reacting. We have more allergies. We have more reactions. We have more sensitivity. So we focus on ingredients that have a track record of being effective without causing these sorts of issues.

Finally, the last way that we’re different — and I think this is a big point — is that we care about efficacy. We want these products to work! Many natural products may smell nice or contain an essential oil or two, but they make little difference on the skin. That’s just not acceptable. It’s a waste of money! So, we worked hard in formulation and during testing to be sure that these ingredients worked well together, and in such a way that they really made a visible difference on skin. We couldn’t be happier with the results, and from what we’re hearing from customers, it was worth the effort.

Are there certain products that you wish to highlight?

One thing we’re really proud of is our Tri-Rescue Complex. Every one of our products contains this synergistic combination of three key ingredients:

Bisabolol: This is the main active ingredient in the medicinal plant chamomile; it delivers powerful anti-irritant and anti-inflammatory properties.
Reishi mushroom: This is known as the “mushroom of immortality;” it increases cellular turnover and hydration.
Turmeric: This is an ancient spice that has been extensively tested lately for all its many health benefits; we already know that it’s a powerful antioxidant and anti-inflammatory, and some studies have indicated a potential anti-cancer activity.

We’ve combined these three ingredients to rescue damaged, inflamed, and sensitive skin, and this is especially important for people who have been in cancer treatment.

Are you aware of places and settings related to oncology care that are using your products and what kind of feedback have you gotten from consumers or medical professionals?

Because I had intimate knowledge of the serious side effects that medical treatments can create on the skin, our team made a concerted effort to introduce several hospitals to our products. I visited several of them, including the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, the St. Francis Hospital in Connecticut, and the Connecticut Children’s Medical Center. At each of these stops, we met with nurses and doctors and helped explain the harsh chemicals that often exist in skin care products — even those that are sometimes recommended for use in medical settings. Then we left a number of free samples for the staff to try and offer to patients.

We were amazed at the results. Here’s one example. At the Connecticut Children’s Medical Center, one of the patients was a seven-year-old girl who was struggling with cracked, red, and painful skin on her hand (not related to treatment). Her mother had tried everything — drugstore brands, high-end creams and medicated creams. She had even gone to the dermatologist and tried prescription solutions. Nothing worked, so here was her poor daughter not only going through medical treatments, but suffering this mean rash on her little hand.

The nurse received our samples and gave some to the girl’s mother. A few days later, mom came back and demanded to know what it was the nurse had given her. She said it was the only thing that had helped her daughter. Amazing!

Here’s the nurse’s testimonial:

“My seven-year-old patient has been afflicted with a hard, plaque-type rash on her upper extremities that is incredibly itchy. I gave her samples of the skin balm and when she came back about three weeks later, her mom asked for more samples because that is the only thing that has helped so far.”

We hear stories like this every day from our customers. Some are going through medical treatments, but others are just living life and dealing with rashes, eczema, redness, irritating, itching, and more. We have a page on our website dedicated to testimonials, with doctors and moms and celebrity makeup artists and green beauty experts and more sharing their personal experiences.

It’s extremely rewarding. Hearing about how our products are enhancing people’s lives makes all the work we’re doing worthwhile.