How underwear is helping young women in Nottingham talk about breast cancer
A bright pink, breast-checking booth might have seemed unusual parked on Nottingham Trent University’s campus, but the meaning behind it was important.
Too many young women still aren't checking their breasts.
With roughly one in seven women in the UK developing breast cancer within their lifetime, and with Nottingham having one of the largest student populations, thousands of girls in the city will fall into the age group least likely to check their breasts.
The travelling ‘Boob Box’, set up by the Lounge Foundation, stopped off in Nottingham in the hopes to tackle this gap.
Project leader Alannah Topham, has worked with the foundation for just over a year, she said: “We want students to get into the habit now of checking monthly and knowing what’s normal.
“The foundation is trying to get through to younger girls so that they can start checking their breasts before it gets too late."
Around them, students browsed the stall, chatted to educators and collected free underwear.
For the Lounge staff, the visit felt personal as well as purposeful.
“I used to study in this city,” said team member Thom Smith.
“It felt right to give back to a community that shaped me.
"We won’t stop until we’ve educated as many people as possible.”
Many girls who attended the event expressed how they believed breast cancer only affected older women.
Final-year fashion student Mani Locker, said: “A couple of women in my family have had breast cancer, but I never thought it would impact me directly.
"It made me check myself that night.
"I’d never even given it a second thought before.”
And Mani is not alone.
Her friend, Natalia Kukula, has always found it a difficult topic to talk about, she said: “It sounds silly, but having it right there in the middle of my university made it feel normal to talk about, I’ve always found it quite intimidating.
"It’s forced me to pay attention, and although I’m lucky enough to not have it, I know that it’s a lot of women’s reality.”
While Mani, Natalia and other students left with a new awareness and new pair of underwear, other women have learned these lessons in the hardest way possible.
For Alex Perry, a lifelong Nottingham resident, breast cancer didn’t wait until later in life, it arrived while she was a local student.
Long before she ever expected to be facing surgeries and scans, she found out she carried a gene that put her at an 80% risk of developing the disease.
“When I found out, I was in shock, I didn’t know the signs of breast cancer I was even meant to be looking out for," she said.
When she went to the hospital for a routine scan, the doctors discovered she actually already had breast cancer.
What followed wasn’t one planned operation, but five.
“I never imagined they’d find anything wrong.
"It was the start to a really tough time”, explained the mother of two.
After treatment, Alex believed the worst had passed, until 2020 when she discovered another lump, and was diagnosed for a second time.
Radiotherapy, further treatment, ongoing medication, and the removal of her ovaries followed.
Picture credit: Alex Perry
Picture credit: Alex Perry
Picture credit: Alex Perry
Picture credit: Alex Perry
Picture credit: Alex Perry
Picture credit: Alex Perry
All of this changed her relationship with her body.
“I didn’t want to look at myself in the mirror,” she said.
“It didn’t feel like I’d had a nice boob job.
"I had implants that didn’t suit my body, my proportions changed, I had scars everywhere.
"My self-esteem dropped.”
Over time, further procedures helped her feel more comfortable, but she said the biggest shift was internal: “I don’t care what anyone else thinks now. I just want to feel good for myself.
"My body’s been through so much and I’m grateful to it.”
Picture credits: Alex Perry
Something as simple as getting dressed became a reminder of how breast cancer had changed her body.
“The bras available after surgery were just horrible,” she said.
“They looked like they were designed for your grandma.
"They felt medical and clinical.”
Curiously, Alex began looking into the wider market, and discovered she wasn’t alone in how she felt.
“There were around 64,000 styles of bras out there, but only 110 designed for post-surgery or mastectomy, that’s 0.2% of the entire market," she said.
"When 1 in 7 women are diagnosed with breast cancer, how can so few options exist for us?
"We don't want bras that make women feel ill or fragile,” she said.
“This isn’t about pink ribbons and pretending everything’s pretty, it’s about strength.
"I wanted to make something that helps women feel capable.
"The work that Lounge Foundation are doing is so important, if something like this had existed when I was a student, I might have understood my own risk sooner."
"When 1 in 7 women are diagnosed with breast cancer, how can so few options exist for us? We don't want bras that make women feel ill or fragile."
Picture credit: Alex Perry
Her designs became the foundation of HER Bodywear, shaped by lived experience and a desire to restore confidence rather than accommodate loss.
The bras she created have features she wished she’d had, such as flexi-wired sides, pockets for prosthetics, and front and back fastenings to make dressing easier.
In Nottingham, women are finding different ways to navigate the realities of breast cancer and are being bound together through different underwear.
Alex said: “My mission is to bring self-esteem back to women who’ve been through breast cancer,” and in Nottingham, that mission is beginning to feel like a shared one.
For further advice on breast awareness and support, visit BreastCancerNow.
