Wife, Mom to 3 Young Children & Surviving Breast Cancer in Style

by Lauren Brodzinski

As a 36 year old healthy woman, I wasn’t prepared or expecting to add breast cancer survivor to who I was. It all started in October 2018 when I was diagnosed with bilateral breast cancer which required a bilateral mastectomy and treatment for the cancer. I went from LIVING a life I had always wanted to FIGHTING for it.

After my diagnosis, I immediately got to work. I spent hours researching, talking to other cancer survivors and meeting with my doctors. I wanted to be as prepared as I could. The recovery, mentally and physically, was overwhelming and one thing I was not prepared for was the drain tubes after my surgery. Wow, those are tough and I had to wear them for weeks. The surgical drains tubes were inserted into the soft tissue of my breast area after surgery to help drain excess fluids that would build up in my body. I had two drains to deal with, one on each side and they need to be held in place — a picture perfect accessory for our Christmas family photos! The drains were uncomfortable and unsightly hanging by safety pins, pinned to my clothing. After I got home from the hospital, the tubes kept getting caught on our door handles, I had had enough!

I researched different drain tube clothing options online, but there were few to choose from, and most were less than fashionable. If I was feeling like this, so were other women. I got to work to create something that would be comfortable to wear, easy to put on, fashionable and most of all would hide the two drain tubes I needed to carry around.

I’ve always had an eye for fashion and design. I had a few ideas in mind and ordered a few generic camisoles online to get my project started. I took them apart and designed an inner pocket for each side and inconspicuously pinned the pockets inside the camisoles. The camisoles also needed to be button up so it would be easy to put on and easy to switch out the drain pockets. My new camisole looked great and felt comfortable to wear. It was just what I needed.

Fast forward to one year later. I was asked to model clothing and accessories for a woman who designed items for women to wear during cancer treatment and recovery. In what I believe was divine intervention, I met Karen MacDonald, the founder of Wrapped in Love, who designs clothing for women with cancer, providing comfort, style and dignity, from treatment through recovery.

I told Karen about my “drain” experience after my mastectomy, and the mock camisoles with pockets I created, and the great need I saw in having something similar on the market. We agreed to collaborate, and together turned my dream into a reality. We made sure that it had all of the design elements I believe to be important based on my own experience:

• super soft fabric
• higher v-neck to conceal bandages and scars
• easy to slip on due to limited arm range after surgery
• big enough buttons to comfortably put on and take off
• two large inner pockets sewn inside to hold multiple drains snug
• an item that could be worn alone or as an accessory under other clothing

We launched our Post Mastectomy Camisoles in the fall of 2020 and they have turned into a best seller. Women are constantly telling us that the camisoles “help them feel pretty and maintain their dignity during a tough time”. We now offer the camisoles in 5 different colors and 2 sizes to fit all women. The camisoles are currently sold on the Wrapped in Love web site (www.wrappedinlove.com) along with Karen’s other recovery clothing items which are proudly made in the U.S.A.

Karen and I are currently working on new colors and possibly patterns for the camisoles so if you are interested in seeing when they will be available, please follow Wrapped in Love on Instagram (wrappedinlove_) and Facebook (wrappedluv)!