Fashion and the Big C

WHEN dealing with a life-threatening illness like breast cancer, being told to keep your chin up can feel patronising and being told that the best way to keep a stiff upper lip is with a daub of lip gloss can make you see red. Many women who've gone through treatment for breast cancer, however, have spoken out about the importance of feeling normal. Alleviating concerns about body image and self-esteem can help to play a small part in the recovery process.

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, a time to remind ourselves that one in nine women in the UK will develop breast cancer. The hundreds of thousands of women who have had or are dealing with breast cancer each have their own stories about how they coped.

Singer Kylie Minogue was diagnosed in 2005, but stayed true to her glamorous self in a series of printed headscarves and fabulous ensembles. When Samantha in Sex and the City, played by Kim Cattrall, developed breast cancer and had chemotherapy, she chose to wear a series of outrageously glamorous wigs, from a pink curly one to an enormous afro. It may seem crass to concern oneself with fashion and beauty when bigger fish are clearly for the frying, but research has shown that women who are dealing with breast cancer are not only dealing with issues of survival, but the challenge to their very sense of self prompted both by surgery and by the other changes to their bodies wrought by the illness and its treatment.

A 2006 Stanford University study interviewed 549 women, aged 22-50, within seven months of diagnosis. It found that half of them experienced two or more body image problems some of the time, or at least one problem much of the time. Breast cancer sufferers face a number of problems. Those who have undergone a lumpectomy or mastectomy will have scars and may have to get used to breasts that have changed shape or size. Chemotherapy can cause hair loss, weight gain or excessive sweating, and can leave skin feeling dry. For some women, looking glamorous is the last thing on their minds. For others, it was never a priority even before their illness. But for the rest, feeling normal provides a valuable psychological boost.

The website www.beautypearlsfor chemogirls.com is an online community for women who want to look and feel their best during treatment. Set up by two women who've been there themselves, the site's tagline is: "We believe that every woman dealing with cancer deserves to look and feel as close to normal as her energy and her spirit will allow." There's that word again; "normal".

Lyndsey, 60, from Edinburgh had a double-mastectomy and reconstructive surgery 25 years ago, and found that there were few options for her in the underwear departments of most high street stores. "At that time, the shops were not geared up for this," she says. "I had to order specialist bras, and staff in shops were not particularly equipped to deal with women who'd undergone surgery. I was only 36 and I found it very difficult to get hold of pretty, youthful bras. Today, everything's different. I find it very easy to find the right bra at a good price on the high street, and most assistants are very clued up. It seems to be much more out in the open. It sounds like a small thing, but for women who've just undergone surgery, being able to get a pretty bra without having to go to a specialist shop or spend a lot of money is one less thing to worry about, which is important."

Here are some suggestions for cancer sufferers seeking to look their best:

POST-SURGERY BRAS

In 2006, Marks & Spencer became the first high street retailer to launch its own brand of post-surgery lingerie after then chief executive, Sir Stuart Rose received a letter from a woman complaining about the limited choice available to post-operative women.

Today they offer a pretty underwear range priced from around £8-£20, including a number of bras designed in association with Breakthrough Breast Cancer.

"Being able to access affordable and fashionable clothing is vital in helping women who have undergone surgery for breast cancer feel good about themselves," says Audrey Birt, the Scotland Director of Breakthrough Breast Cancer.

"The post-surgery lingerie range provided by Marks & Spencer is an excellent example of a retailer reaching out to this very important group of customers."

Marks & Spencer's post-surgery bras are available online at www.marksandspencer.com and in the Aberdeen and Glasgow stores, where bra fitters are specially trained to fit women who have undergone surgery.

Top online lingerie retailer figleaves.com also stocks pretty mastectomy bras, while www.nicolajane.com offers wicking sleepwear to deal with sweating and www.rigby andpeller.com (bra fitters to the Queen) offer mastectomy bras and swimwear.

HAIR LOSS

Women who experience hair loss during chemotherapy tackle it in different ways. Some choose to do nothing, some opt to wear a wig (try Edinburgh's A&A studios, which also offers wigs on the NHS; www.hairadvice.info), and some will choose to wear a headscarf or hat. For those looking to splash out or to treat a friend who is undergoing chemotherapy, a printed silk Hermes scarf is the ultimate luxury. Prices start from around £100 and can tip over £200 for a 90 x 90cm silk square. Staff at the Hermes concession within House of Fraser in Glasgow offer advice on how to tie a scarf around your head and can even give you a booklet to advise you on scarf tying when you get back home.

If you're looking for something a little more exotic, a chic turban is the way to go. Prada showed satin turbans with a mid-1940s feel in its spring/summer 2007 collection, complete with an eye-watering price tag, but this is one look that's pretty easy to achieve on your own.

Simply wrap a long, wide rectangular scarf around your head, starting at the back, then pulling the ends together at the front and crossing them over. Keep winding the ends around your head in opposite directions, crossing them over until you run out of fabric, then knot the ends or tuck them neatly into the folds.

EYELASHES

For some women, losing their eyelashes or eyebrows can be just as traumatic as losing their hair. Kylie Minogue said: "When it starts to grow back, it's thrilling. It's like, there's an eyelash, there's an eyebrow."

While eyebrows can be pencilled on, eyelashes are a little trickier. For women who have lost all their eyelashes, the Shavata brow bar in Harvey Nichols in Edinburgh offers false "cluster" lashes which can be applied directly to the skin at a cost of £55.

They will last for around three weeks. For women with a few of their own eyelashes, lashes can be applied to the existing ones from £3 per pair of individual lashes.

SKIN AND NAILS

Chemotherapy can leave nails pigmented or discoloured and they may become more brittle and dry. Try massaging cuticle cream into the area daily and remember to remove polish using a non-acetone-based remover, which is less drying than acetone. If radiation leaves your skin feeling dry, itchy or tender, aloe can help. Many women choose to switch to a heavier moisturiser or apply it more frequently.

If you fancy treating yourself to a spa treatment, think aromatherapy.

Research carried out by Marie Curie Cancer Care found that aromatherapy massage using Roman Chamomile essential oil resulted in significant reduction in anxiety in patients, as well as improvements in their physical comfort.