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Look Mikes

When it's not the
real thing, women
take comfort in
wearable
substitutes.

RUTH LITTMANN STAFF WRITER

of too long ago, Lillian, a grown For instance, if a woman's re-
woman in West Bloomfield, at- maining breast sags, she can pick
tended a cocktail party where she a fake one that sags in a similar
caught a male acquaintance siz- fashion. If she wants a prosthesis
ing up her chest.
with nipples, that's available, too.
"They both look the same to
Harriet Dunsky, owner of Bo-
me," he said.
bette Shop in Pontiac, tries to of-
The comment didn't lead to a fer her customers a warm,
lawsuit. Lillian, who wears a pros- feminine environment where they
thetic breast, was happy to hear can feel comfortable and safe. So
it. The man knew Lillian had a does Annette Newman, owner of
breast removed and he badly Annette's Unique Boutique in
needed advice. After diagnosing Troy. They carpet their fitting
his wife's illness as cancer, doc- rooms and decorate walls with
tors had recommended a mastec- art. Some fitters in these stores
tomy.
are, themselves, breast-cancer
Lillian was quick to offer reas- survivors.
surance. "Tell your wife she's the
"They've been where my cus-
same person. Just because she'll tomers are," Ms. Newman says.
have a breast removed doesn't "Women, when they first come
make her any different," she said. into the store, feel very frightened.
Lillian learned that lesson the They're confused. They don't
hard way. When she lost a breast know where to turn. At first, they
to cancer in 1977, her (now for- are more concerned about their
mer) husband was not as sup- life and whether they're going to
portive as she needed him to be. live or die."
Women who worked in apparel
By their second or third shop-
shops were downright rude. And ping excursion, however, women
prostheses? Forget it. The selec- usually redirect their worries to
tion was awful.
appearance. Will a "fake boob"
"They were hot. They were look odd? Will they be able to wear
heavy, and the foam would dete- pretty lingerie and feel • sexy
riorate," she remembers. "Some- again?
times they slipped out of my bra
when I bent down."
Fake boobs, as Lillian calls
them, have come a long way since
then. Manufacturers have re-
placed foam inserts with silicon
gel surrounded by a polyurethane
membrane. The combination
— Harriet Dunsky
comes in a variety of shapes,
shades, weights and sizes. They
can be attached with adhesive di-
Some retailers encourage hus-
rectly onto a woman's chest or bands and boyfriends to accom-
slipped into a pocket sewn into pany their significant others to
her clothing.
in-store fittings. Ms. Newman re-
Fashions also are more diverse, members one man who squeezed
and several retail stores feature his wife's right breast, then
seamstresses who convert normal squeezed her left. He couldn't tell
garb into mastectomy apparel. On which one was real.
"We see some really unusual
top of that, retailers frequently
send their employees to certifica- things going on here," Ms. New-
tion programs. Most are spon- man admits. "But it's all out of
sored by prosthetic love and it's beautiful."
manufacturers. The programs
In her Bobette Shop, Ms. Dun-
teach fitters about compassion, as sky displays a number of colorful
well as proper selling techniques. bathing suits. She demonstrates
"It was the first time I went into how a simple pocket sewn into the
a women's apparel store after my cup can renew swimming as an
surgery," Lillian recalls. "I was option for mastectomy patients.
just 51 years old. I felt, emotion- Nightgowns and brassieres —
ally, like half a women. The lady even hard-to-fit sizes like 32 AA
in the store told me, 'Well, you're and 54 H — can help women re-
never going to look like you looked bound into the world of the living.
before, so you might as well face
Like other people in the busi-
it.' "
ness, Ms. Dunsky en-
That's not what Lillian want- courages men to take
Harriet
ed to hear. And, in a certain sense, an active role in their Dunsky slips
it was untrue. These days, pros- loved one's recovery. a prosthesis
into a bra
"I've seen a big
thetic breasts are made to match.

"We're doing more
laughing than
crying."

pocket.

change in men's attitudes," she
says. 'Ten years ago, a few of my
first customers' husbands di-
vorced them. I don't see that any-
more. The husbands will sit in the
waiting room. We're doing more
laughing than crying."
Breast cancer is the most com-
mon malignancy among Ameri-
can women. According to the
American Cancer Society, the dis-
ease kills 46,000 American
women and strikes another
180,000 annually. Many women
choose breast reconstruction,
which affords them the
convenience and mental comfort
of having two breasts again. How-
ever, some women cannot opt for
reconstruction, generally because
they are obese, have high blood
pressure, smoke or are still un-
dergoing chemotherapy.
The American Cancer Society
says it does not recommend or en-
dorse any particular prosthesis.
However, it publishes a shopping
guide to offer mastectomy pa-
tients information. The guide sug-
gests that women comparative
shop for a prosthesis and, while

doing so, wear form-fitting gar-
ments, such as knit dresses, "that
will drape nicely and give you a
very clear look at the shape and
contour of your breast."
The shopping guide also ad-
vises women to consult their sur-
geons first. In addition to
obtaining a prescription for the
prosthesis and bra, they should
submit the original prescription
to insurance companies and make
copies for the retailer.
Places like the Bobette Shop,
Annette's and the Women's
Health Boutique in Lathrup Vil-
lage are licensed providers for in-
surance companies and therefore
honor some forms of health-care
coverage. Medicare, according to
the ACS, usually covers 80 per-
cent of the cost of a prosthesis.
(The percentage is based on a cost
Medicare assigns the product.)
Medicaid covers the full cost of
prosthesis and bra.
The right prosthesis with a
repertoire of feminine undergar-
ments are important, but for
women like Lillian, a positive

LOOK-ALIKES page 72