The Colon Club

Regarding masks, my oncology center (John Muir) requires employees to wear surgical masks and patients are given a surgical mask when they arrive and are required to wear it if they have not brought their own.

I happen to have N95 masks at home. They were left over from last year’s fire season.

My surgeon said that because I’m recovering from 2 surgeries and also on chemo, he didn’t want me wearing any masks other than the N95 ones that I have. He said that cloth masks and surgical masks can help an infected person not spread the virus, so he is in favor of them in general, but if I’m wearing one, and an infected person coughs on me, the cloth or surgical mask would actually hold the virus close to my mouth and nose increasing my chances of becoming infected.

I’m fortunate to have other adults here who can get groceries and run to the pharmacy for me so the only time I’m leaving the house is for doctor appointments. Still I am aware of the stigma of wearing an N95 mask when I’m not a healthcare professional on the front lines.

Fortunately, all of the nurses and my oncologist were happy to see me wearing one at appointments.

It is such an uncertain time. There are quite a few gray areas and I think it is only natural that our opinions are going to change as the situation changes and we get more information.

Hey Polluxx
You matter too . Delighted to hear you have a proper mask . That’s what I would want for you . My family has a few front line workers and have properly fitted masks for work . In fact every few weeks they are refitted for them as they run out of stock for one brand and change to another they go through the whole process again . We want the best for you too .
I have clothe ones as I am just going to the shops Twice a week . There is some companies who are donating some of the profits from masks to the health care charities .
I am about to order some for my mum as she feels more secure with them on . What a world we are in and navigate it we must .
Best foot forward as my mum likes to say .
Take care ,
Stu

polluxx wrote:I’m fortunate to have other adults here who can get groceries and run to the pharmacy for me so the only time I’m leaving the house is for doctor appointments. Still I am aware of the stigma of wearing an N95 mask when I’m not a healthcare professional on the front lines.

Fortunately, all of the nurses and my oncologist were happy to see me wearing one at appointments.

Do not worry one whit about wearing an N95 mask in your situation! If anyone says anything, just say your surgeon told you to wear one since you're recovering from surgery and also on chemo. That should shut them up!

So glad to hear you are protecting yourself!!

Juliej

juliej wrote:

polluxx wrote:I’m fortunate to have other adults here who can get groceries and run to the pharmacy for me so the only time I’m leaving the house is for doctor appointments. Still I am aware of the stigma of wearing an N95 mask when I’m not a healthcare professional on the front lines.

Fortunately, all of the nurses and my oncologist were happy to see me wearing one at appointments.

Do not worry one whit about wearing an N95 mask in your situation! If anyone says anything, just say your surgeon told you to wear one since you're recovering from surgery and also on chemo. That should shut them up!

So glad to hear you are protecting yourself!!

Juliej

Ditto

Honestly, I'm not totally sure what an N95 mask looks like. I see many people wearing many different types of masks, so if someone is actually wearing one, I would not really know. I believe there are a lot of people like me out there who just don't know actually how they look. So please, don't give it a 2nd thought.

I'm like stu, I wear my cloth ones.

Lee

I believe there are some concerns here dealing with the use of "masks" during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Features, Evaluation and Treatment Coronavirus (COVID-19)

Viable viral efficiency of N95 and P100 respirator filters at constant and cyclic flow.

These NIOSH-approved FFRs and particulate respirators equipped with these cartridges can be anticipated to achieve expected levels of protection (consistent with their assigned protection factor) against airborne viral agents, provided that they are properly selected, fitted, worn, and maintained.

Most masks are NOT used as defined in the guidelines above

Most people "assume" a mask will protect them .....
then WHY do we have first line health care PROFESSIONALS dying of COVID-19 despite wearing PPE ?

Will wearing an N-95 help ? maybe

I use a P-100, please look it up and I still use ALL the protective measures
STAY 6 feet apart
avoid sick folks
WASH WASH hands and face = REPEAT !!!!!!
don't touch your face etc.

my P-100 filters 99.7% of ALL aerosols

an N-95 gets about 95% at best and it all depends upon PARTICLE SIZE IN THE AEROSOL DROPLETS

the P-100 protects against particles about 10 times SMALLER than an N-95

People here advising folks that an N-95 IS good protection is not science based IF they have extenuating circumstances in their OWN lives.

Will it help ? maybe
Will it PREVENT ?
I believe the answer is NO.

DO everything else and if you need to use a mask, OK

but please do NOT rely on an N-95 to "PROTECT YOU"
it won't

I sincerely pray ALL here stay safe

Lee wrote:
Honestly, I'm not totally sure what an N95 mask looks like. I see many people wearing many different types of masks, so if someone is actually wearing one, I would not really know...

Here is what some of the masks look like:
N100 ... N95
R95 ... R100


https://ellessco.com/blog/2019/12/n95-n99-n100-difference


Here is what the FDA says about N95 masks:
N95 respirators and surgical masks/face masks
https://www.fda.gov/medical-devices/personal-protective-equipment-infection-control/n95-respirators-and-surgical-masks-face-masks#s4


Mask standards in the European Union
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FFP_mask
https://images.midilibre.fr/api/v1/images/view/5e8754b88fe56f055c0ee5d5/full/image.jpg?v=1

Interestingly the P-100 is exactly the respirator I had to use for asbestos remediations.
It is a pain to wear properly BUTT it works !
With sealed goggles, everything is protected, which none of the masks do...
the eyes are still unprotected.

Just a few one liners I have come up with to deal with certain situations :

Six feet away
OR six feet under !

Hunker down
shelter in place
Keep ON keepin’
COVID safe

Spread out on the curb
and CURB the spread
better apart than
together DEAD

Stay POSITIVE ... TEST NEGATIVE !!!


Trying to stay positive here ... BUTT when I see folks deliberately putting themselves and others at risk
out on the streets, at the beaches, in stores etc.
sometimes they need a reminder !
as always ... YMMV !

Stay safe Clubbers
we WILL get through this

Harmony
CRguy

I don't think that anyone is being encouraged to think that any kind of mask makes you "safe" all by itself. A mask can make you a bit safer if worn and removed and disinfected correctly and combined with social distancing and hand-washing. Anyone who thinks otherwise must have been living under a rock for the last few weeks.

JJH wrote:Here is what some of the masks look like:
N100 ... N95
R95 ... R100


https://ellessco.com/blog/2019/12/n95-n99-n100-difference


Here is what the FDA says about N95 masks:
N95 respirators and surgical masks/face masks
https://www.fda.gov/medical-devices/personal-protective-equipment-infection-control/n95-respirators-and-surgical-masks-face-masks#s4


Mask standards in the European Union
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FFP_mask
https://images.midilibre.fr/api/v1/images/view/5e8754b88fe56f055c0ee5d5/full/image.jpg?v=1

JJH,

Thanks for the info. Come to find out, we do have 1 N95 mask in our house. Looks just like the N100 (1nd pic on the top). Don't think it is any good thought. I laid tile and hardwood floors in our house about 10-15 yrs ago. Got it sometime during that time. Has been used and I believe expired. Thanks for the pic, when I saw it, I'm like I think we have something like that. Anyway I'm a bit smarter today, thanks,

This has been an interesting thread. Learning a few things here and there.

Lee

AND on a slightly lighter note
BUTT likely applicable to this forum

How you could catch coronavirus from someone's fart


Stay SAFER everyone !

CRguy wrote:AND on a slightly lighter note
BUTT likely applicable to this forum

How you could catch coronavirus from someone's fart


Stay SAFER everyone !

Really, first my shoes and now my farts

Okay, gotta ask, I have a permanent colostomy, I don't wear "granny panties", I wear bikinis underwear. They fit "PERFECTLY" "UNDER" my stoma. Was measured that way 16 yrs ago. I wear the gas passer bags. I suspect I am safe from passing the coronavirus on to others (which I don't have at the moment) butt just wanna make sure. And I don't leave the house without long jeans or shorts.

Do I need to put a mask on my gas passer colostomy bags too

Lee

Kind of a semi-serious answer here
WRT the gas passer bags ... they are likely just an activated carbon filter like the ileo ones I used
SO technically not a micropore system like the ones in this topic BUTT

BUTT .... given the context I would still likely prefer the SIX FEET / 2 meters rule

Interesting side note :
corona viruses as a group generally seem to cause either respiratory OR GIT diseases

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has a classical pairing of the Yin/Yang organs (Zang fu organ theory)
with ..... Lung and Large Intestine being a Zang fu pairing, of particular importance during the current pandemic.

maybe just one of those things that make us go ... Hmmmmmmmmm?

Cheers
CRguy

I'm starting chemo next week. The procedure will be a bit different because of covid. I'll be taking pills and coming in only once every 3 weeks for Oxaliplatin infusion.

Ulendon ,

Great to hear from you . How are you keeping ? Hope your recovery went well !

That is actually similar to what my mum had all those years ago and it was manageable.

Hope it goes well for you . Take care and keep in touch . We are thinking of everyone going through treatment just now .
Take care ,
Stu

Hi Ulendon ,

Just read your own thread . No idea how I missed that . You have had a rough old time from surgery. I sincerely hope things start to settle for you soon . I think it’s so hard just now not having another set of ears at the hospital and just for some comfort too .

Hope it is all easing .

Take care ,
Stu