Can I wear a bra?

Archer, I think some others with more LE knowledge will weigh in on this, but I can say that I find the logic a bit weak for prohibiting experimenting with bras after lumpectomy. There are two somewhat conflicting perspectives on this. 1) A well-fitting bra will provide some compression to the area and help to prevent lymph from pooling in the breast, if you have LE. 2) Many women with truncal LE find that camisoles work well for them, because absence of a band around the trunk allows lymph to flow more readily than in a bra.

There is a legitimate concern about LE after lumpectomy, and particularly if accompanied by sentinel node biopsy and/or radiation to the axilla.  But if you are unhappy with the cami (and a one-sided jigglybounce does not sound fun to me!), I should think you could experiment with bras.  I don't think a bra would trigger LE, but perhaps worsen symptoms if you already have it (on that no-trigger statement I'm out on a limb...hopefully Binney or Kira or LindaLou or someone else with truncal LE knowledge will comment). 

Seems to me that every woman who has truncal LE ends up in trial-end-error mode on what works best to keep that lymph flowing. Some of us wear UnderArmour compression shirts; some wear compression camis; some do well with bras.  I was in UA shirts constantly but now that it's hot out, I've been experimenting with bras, and I found a few sports bras that do not look like uniboob sports bras, have very supportive cups and nice, wide bands that hug my truncal area perfectly, providing the compression I want.  I had full recon so my issues are quite different from yours, of course.

So ladies in the LE forum, do we think that wearing a bra can trigger LE through constriction via the band and/or the cups?

Carol

I have what I think is mild, transient LE on my left chest wall (the side of my mast/SNB).  Most bras of any type -- even soft, stretchy sports bras -- make that condition worse.  Within an hour of putting on one of those bras, my left side starts to ache and I'm anxious to take it off.

I recently found one type of bra -- the "Genie" bra -- that I can wear all day long with no ill effects whatsoever. (The Genie has been mentioned on this forum before.)  I bought it as an experiment, choosing a "Large" because of the ... well, for no particular reason except I figured a "Medium" would be too tight and I couldn't imagine keeping an "X-Large" on my 36A/B chest. 

I think for me the key to the comfort of the Genie bra is the width and placement of the band -- it rides below the area where my drains came through the skin, whereas the bands of most bras sit right on top of that area.  The Genie also does not seem to cut into the soft tissue of my armpit like some bras do.  The straps are very wide and stretchy.

One drawback to the Genie bra (for me) is that I have to leave the foam pads in to provide more support for my droopy right side. (The Genie has pockets with removable foam inserts.)  I just slip my foob into the cup where my left breast would be, and, voila!  It works.  Oh... there's another drawback -- the Genie has no hooks, so you have to slip it on over your head or step into it.  Some days my achy joints barely allow me to slip it on; but once it's on, it can stay on all day.

The Genie isn't a hot-weather bra, because it does cover a lot of acreage. It sure solved a problem I've been having, though.  So, I'd say go ahead and do some experiments, especially if you've been cleared to wear a sports bra anyway.

otter

I wear what ever bra I feel like wearing. I now have disease on the other side and a tight one helps stop the bouncing thus decreasing the pain. I always thought a tight one was the treatment for breast lymphedema.

I would not listen to a camisole dealer. Do you have a physical therapist to go to? Maybe your surgeon can write a script for you.

In answer to Carol.

I have one bra that does make my LE worse. I wear it only with my favorite cocktail dress. 

I switch in and out of underwires during the day, I probably wear a UW about 4 hours a day, somtimes more. I have a looser old UW that I can probably get 8 hours out of.

I wear my belisse when I can. I use fabric from a silverwave tummy band inside it.

I used to wear sears soft apostrophe bras, similar to the ahh bra, but to be honest, they seem to make the LE worse as well! Go figure! With the silverwave it's not as bad.

I occasionally spend a little time at home bra free..but I think I end up more swollen.

Go figure...it's confusing!

Well, I think the conclusion we draw from our different experiences is that our LE experiences are different! Bra experimentation seems to be what we have in common.  Maybe we can coin a new word: braxperiment!

I don't know about everyone else, but I have a drawerful of bras, compression camis, compression shirts. Like a lot of clothing, I end up wearing the same ones over and over. Finding 'the one' is so hard!

Archer, I think most of us would say that it's pretty hard to know if a particular bra works, just while trying it on in the store.  Best of luck in your own discovery process.

Carol

Does anyone know the difference between the Ahh bra and the Genie bra? Sometimes the Ahh bra rolls up a bit. Does that happen with the Genie?

I am sensitive to bands of any kind since I have truncal LE.  I really wanted the Genie bra to work for me, and I bought it a full size too big (maybe 2 sizes).  Still, it was too tight.  Possibly the next size up will do better on me.  It does take a lot of experimenting to figure it all out.

The Genie bra has removable cups. They're a stiff foam shell that doesn't seem to compress, even in the stretchy pockets of the bra. So, there's no flattening at all, with the cups in there.  If you don't want to use them, you can curl them up and slip them out of the pockets through slits along the side. The bra itself is a very stretchy material that isn't thick or stiff.  If I take the foam cups out, the bra really doesn't support my droopy right side very well. 

I just thought of something:  there's no reason to have to use the foam cups that come with the bra.  Why not put a silicone foob in the pocket on the flat side, and put whatever support we want or need on the other side?  Sheesh.  I spent my whole life trying to avoid bras that had stiff, formed cups, and resisting wearing "enhancers" to make my 34B/36A boobs look bigger than they were.  Now, I'm wearing a totally fake boob on one side, and I'm "enhancing" the other side with a foam shell.  Funny, how circumstances can change how we think about things.

Oh, and I haven't had any trouble with the Genie bra rolling up on me.  I haven't been wearing it very long, though; so maybe as it gets older, the band will roll more.  I need to find more of these things.  I wish they sold them one to a pack, because I really don't need the black one that was paired with this beige one.

otter

I have bought all kinds of bras--Genie and some others recommended.  None worked.  I always hurt too  much from the fibrosis under my breast.  The only ones that work are the ones that I get at the masectomy bra place with the pocket to hold my half prosthesis.  My insurance pays for 6 a year but are not too expensive if I want more.  I also get sports bras there.  I have no pain with them.  Plus no side seams which I cannot stand.