A cancer charity in Wrekenton is offering free bra fitting workshops to women who have undergone breast surgery, helping them regain confidence after mastectomy or lumpectomy.
Fighting All Cancers Together (Fact) hosts monthly sessions where women can try specialist bras and prosthetic breasts before ordering them. The charity says the service is making a real difference to patients' quality of life.
Why specialist fitting matters
About 60,000 women are diagnosed with breast cancer each year in the UK, with roughly a quarter undergoing mastectomy or lumpectomy to fully or partially remove breast tissue.
Jo Silcock, who leads the fitting sessions, said the workshops help women move past the initial shock of surgery. "They leave this room feeling better than they did when they came in," she said.
Silcock explained that after surgery, many women focus only on what they have lost. "What we try to do is make a woman feel fantastic in her bra again, make her feel like she's always felt and make it one less thing to worry about."
More than just fitting
The sessions also provide emotional support in a non-clinical, non-retail environment. "You've got ladies that are going through very similar situations," Silcock said. "It's lovely to watch someone come in who's perhaps very shy, then watch them skipping out the room."
Barbara Stubbings, diagnosed with breast cancer 10 years ago, said the service transformed how she felt about her appearance. "Jo fitted us and gave me an insert, it helps a great deal because I can now wear the same clothes as everyone else and I can look normal," she said.
Stubbings is expecting to finish her latest round of treatment in November.