Hello Melissa, my name is Colin. I'm 59 and am also battling cancer. Pancreatic, in my case and quite advanced. I understand the emotions associated with the side-effects of chemo, but on the subject of wigs, I know a lot more.
As a former client myself, I had a lot of involvement in the hair replacement industry and have seen many recipients of hairpieces, a lot of whom were women. Some were battling cancer and others alopecia. Some just had naturally thinning hair. But wow did they look great!
Wigs nowadays are state of the art, including real human hair and synthetic hair. They really do look good. And on a personal note, as a guy there was always one hell of a stigma that went with trying cover up baldness, but with women that doesn't apply.
Put it this way, if anyone, a work colleague, for example, said anything detrimental, just tell them that you are losing your natural hair because of chemo treatment. Trust me, they will never say another word, in fact it's doubtful that anyone would in the first place. In fact, as strange as it might sound, they would probably even be a bit jealous of your fantastic new look.
One thing I've learned at this stage of my life is not to give a damn what anyone thinks or says about me, but I've also learned that no one really says anything. They have their own lives and problems to deal with.
So, just do it. Find a reputable (not online) local hair replacement service and go in and talk to them. I wish you all the best of luck, with that, and with your cancer, of course.
Colin
