Co-founder, Bricon Foundation, Dr Niyi Adekeye, Mrs Abigail Simon-Hart, Prof. Adetola Daramola, Deputy Chairman Medical Advisory Committee LUTH, Nicolas Iruhre, Professor of Radiology and Mr Caleb Yakubu, Coordinator LUTH Breast Clinic.
An NGO, Bricon Foundation, on Friday donated 100 mastectomy brassieres to the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), Idi-Araba, Lagos, for the use of breast cancer indigent survivors.
Mrs Abigail Simon-Hart, a co-founder of the NGO and Dr Niyi Adekeye, donated the mastectomy brassieres to mark the 2019 World Cancer Day.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Simon-Hart handed over the brassieres to Prof. Adetola Daramola, the Chairman, LUTH Medical Advisory Committee and Mr Caleb Yakubu, Coordinator, Breast Clinic of in LUTH.
A mastectomy bra is specially designed for women who have undergone a mastectomy, or a lumpectomy, and can be worn with breast prostheses.
A quality mastectomy bra is more than just a traditional bra with added pockets. A mastectomy bra should offer enough coverage to secure your breast form, soft materials for sensitive skin and lightweight support.
Simon-Hart and Adeleye, both co-founders, lost one parent each to other forms of cancer, which had further driven their passions to reduce the sufferings of cancer patients in Nigeria.
Presenting the materials, Simon-Hart, a breast cancer survivor, who had double mastectomy in 2014, said that having breast cancer does not mean death sentence for such patients.
Simon-Hart said that the brassieres were meant to restore breast cancer survivors with self-confidence and help them to feel whole again after removal of their breasts.
She ounseling the importance of the bras to their emotional recovery in battling the disease.
“We are giving this to support indigent women suffering from breast cancer, who had surgically removed either one or both breasts as part of their treatment.
“I want these patients to know that being diagnosed as having breast cancer does not connote a death sentence, but they should believe in themselves,” she said.
Also, Adekeye, said that the foundation had to date helped over 200 breast cancer survivor patients with free brassieres.
Adekeye said the NGO was able to make the donation with the help of a United Kingdom based company, Nicole Jane, which ounseling in the production of mastectomy brassieres.
In her responses, Daramola lauded the NGO for their donation to the patients, promising to give the mastectomy brassieres to patients who already had their breasts removed.
“Currently, we have 85 patients on our record, who had undergone breast surgeries and their breasts were removed.
“We look forward to more of this from you, and we call on more NGOs to extend their hands of love to most of our cancer patients,” Daramola said.
The foundation, which was founded in 2016 had given different forms of assistance to cancer patients generally in Nigeria.
It had rendered different forms of support to cancer patients.
They included funding of medical treatment, ounseling, provision of free mastectomy products, support groups for women and men whose womenfolk had cancer or who had cancer themselves.
