1. Home
  2. Health
  3. Breast Cancer
photo of Pam Stephan
Breast Cancer Blog

By Pam Stephan, About.com Guide to Breast Cancer

Kathy Adams - Fitness Trainer, Clothing Designer

Sunday June 28, 2009
confident clothing
Kathy Adams
Photo © Confident Clothing Company
Kathy Adams is a fitness trainer and a breast cancer survivor. When she turned 50, she was diagnosed with Stage III, Grade 3 Invasive Ductal Carcinoma. Because the cancer had spread to her lymph nodes, she opted for a double mastectomy. That's when she discovered the discomfort of surgical drains. Most of us who have breast surgery wind up dealing with surgical drains - these grenade-shaped bottles that collect excess lymph fluid after surgery. Surgical drains bobble around your side, near your waist, and generally get in the way. Kathy Adams designed a line of clothing with hidden pockets (that you can later remove) which will carry the drains for you. There are several colors of tops to choose from as well as a variety of sizes. I appreciate the fact that nobody will need to pull these on overhead - raising your arms after breast surgery can be painful and sometimes impossible. Kathy designed these while still in treatment, and her sister Susan Baxter helped bring these to market. Their line, Confident Clothing Company, includes tops, pants, capris and caps made of moisture-wicking fabric that keep you cool and stylish, even if a hot flash grabs you at the wrong moment! Kathy Adams is now a 3-year breast cancer survivor and still works as a fitness coach. "I really wanted to help other women go through the journey more easily than I did," said Adams. "That's really important to me." I'm glad she did something about it!

| Twitterstream | Newsletter Signup | Forum |

Comments

July 1, 2009 at 6:12 am
(1) Ann says:

What a wonderful thing to come up with—I sure could have used one of those tops 6 years ago–Thanks so much!!!!

Leave a Comment

Line and paragraph breaks are automatic. Some HTML allowed: <a href="" title="">, <b>, <i>, <strike>

Explore Breast Cancer
About.com Special Features

Learn how you can reduce your your numbers with these nutrition and exercise tips. More >

Keep yourself, and your family, happy and healthy this fall with these tips. More >

  1. Home
  2. Health
  3. Breast Cancer

©2009 About.com, a part of The New York Times Company.

All rights reserved.