Chemo and Face Mask?

Yes...on the days right after an infusion, especially, or when entering public spaces with random people. Your body will be immunocompromised so it doesn't matter whether you are freaked out by germs. Germs could make you ill and delay your treatment. Tell people not to get close to you even if they "just have the sniffles." You really cannot afford to get sick while on chemo.

I had the neulasta shots and still became very immunocompromised. It was so bad that essentially I hardly went out but when I did, yes, I I wore a mask, kept my hands in my pockets (so I wouldn't touch anything) and used hand sanitizer immediately after touching anything that I couldn't avoid touching.

I was hospitalized twice during chemo for IV antibiotics as I was developed fevers while my WBCs were essentially zero.

You'll get a sense of how you respond after the first cycle when they do your blood work. If your WBCs stay up, you probably don't need to wear a mask unless you're in very crowded conditions with sick people, like a family dr's waiting room etc.

I occasionally wore a face mask if I had to be out in particularly crowded places but I think the Neulasta actually made me more resistant to some bugs than normal. I got sick a few weeks after my final infusion when the Neulasta's effect wore off.

I'm very skeptical that standard face masks do much to prevent the transmission of illness, so I ordered N95 NIOSH masks, the type of masks researchers use when they work with pathogens.

I ordered small ones with a seal and a vent.

Honeywell 14110393 N1125 N95 SAF-T-FIT Plus Particulate Respirator with Boomerang Nose Seal and Valve, Molded Cup, Small (Pack of 20)