hi need some advice,i had mastectomy 18 months ago,im going abroad this year and want to wear a bikini,i have looked at bikini tops especailly made for prothesis but they are either horrible or cost a fortune,i found one i really liked but it was £90 think its disgraceful these suppliers are profiting from our misfortune,anyway ive seen you can buy pockets to sew into swimwear i have found bikini tops that are fuller so will hide my shape but wondered if anybody had any experience in using these pockets.
Hi there,
Yes I agree with you the mastectomy range of swimwear from the specialist catalogues are horrendously expensive & as you say not very pretty. I just shopped around & found ones I liked from the likes of Tesco, M & S and Debenhams that weren’t too revealing & sewed a pocket into them (I got mine from Amoena). It worked absolutely fine & I had no problems. I knew it was there but I think other people would have to look pretty closely to notice and anyway so what if they did, I didn’t really care! The only gripe I had was that I could only get the pockets in white or black, why not make them in a range of colours to match? I also did this in my bras as well as the specialist don’t really cater for my size (30B/C).
Good luck, I’m sure you’ll find something you’ll like & have a fantastic holiday.
Love lbx157
You could try your hospital and see if they would get a pocket put in for you. You could send your top to places like Woman’s Zone and have a pocket sewn in professionally. Swimming prosthetics are expensive but a bath scrunchie in a pocket doesn’t drip as much as a softie and the weight with water doesn’t drag the top down.
I have got a bikini, tankini and swimming costume from Nicola Jane.
They have 2 shops but also do on line ordering. They are nicely made and have some nice designs.
Fiona
hi
i have just bought a couple of costumes from isme catalouge in the sale with a 20% discount for new customers worked out at £8.63 and just over £12.00 they have moulded cups built in ,they are nice (even my daughter said they were nice )!!!
my hospital gave me some pockets in case i needed them and a lightweight shell swimming prosthetic .
liz
Hi, I have bought a couple of tankinis from Matalan with removeable pads in them and find that they are ideal as I can just slip my swimming prosthesis in after removing the pads. This works fine for me and you don’t have to worry about getting the right colour pockets.
Jackie
Hi there, yes I agree the cost of post surgery swimwear is awful. I already had a nice new swimsuit that I bought last year and had hardly worn so I thought I would try to sew a pocket in. The prosthesis advisor at hospital had given me a few pockets to sew into bras so I used one of these. With a little jiggling around I found I could sew the pocket onto the support shelf in the top and so it doesnt show on the other side. It seems to fit OK and the swim prosthesis isnt as heavy as the regular one. I cant say what it will be like to swim in yet as I havent tried yet, but I’d say its worth a try. Good luck
what a coinincidence coming across this thread, guess what i’ve been looking at today! M&S have a grand total of 7 to choose from i agree that none particulally nice
I like Jackies idea of the removable pads, something to consider
Cackles - are you not able get a swim prothesis from the hospital, or have you tried one and not liked it? i asked for one in readiness for when i feel ready to go swimming
Gill
gill13 - snap, been looking too on-line this evening. £83 for a tankini on one site. made the £40 ones on another look like a bargain! not.
TTM
Gil no problem I have a couple of costumes and two shells. But the scrunchies are very good to keep in a swimming costume pocket if you are bilateral or can’t afford £60 for one or £120 for two. A lot of hospitals don’t provide a swimming prosthesis because of budget problems. I certainly did not have enough to provide them where I worked.
Hi Ladies
I too asked my hospital if I could have a swimming prosthesis as well but they said I’d have to buy one. Not being back at work yet and living on benefits I sadly don’t have the spare cash to buy one and currently use my day-to-day prosthesis (which does get very heavy when swimming). I bought my costume from Nicola Jane (in the sale).
If anyone is in the fortunate position where their hospital provides a swimming prosthesis but they don’t want to use it, would any of you be kind enough to get one for me? I would really appreciate it as I try to go swimming with my 11 year old daughter and it would make life much easier 
Much love
Deb x
My hospital have beenvery generous with prostheses, I seem to have about 10! Have found it difficult getting it just right, being quite large breasted. The proper swim prostheses are good as they are soft but weighted so they stay in place. You just have topress them descreetly when leaving the pool to squeeze out excesswater.
I have a few spares (normal + swim ones) + would be happy to pass on as I know they are siilly price to buy + they are currently just cluttering my wardrobe. Obviously anyone a similar size is welcome. My mx is left side + I think I have sizes around 9-11.
I also have some lovely post surgery bras mainly m+s that have been barely worn coz I gained alot of weight post mx so went up a good few sizes. I have a bundle of 38ds, autograph, per una, amoena etc.
Tina x
Hi I had my mastectomy 11 years ago, and wear self adhesive prothesis bilateral, I found that specialist companies were really expensive for their swimwear and some were still very basic colours, but I found that BHS were good, I get their tankini, swimsuit and bikini, as long as they have Removable Cups, you can use this as a pocket, and get the same support as you do from a specialist one with pockets. Matalan have the same good styles and again if they have removable cups or inserts use this as the pocket.
This way you can get at least 3-4 swimwear for the price of one from the specialists.
I also get the clear silicone hollow swimforms from our NHS in Wales, This was agreed by our Health Minister a few years ago that women should get swimforms from NHS, this saved me £240 as i had to buy them up until then, and having to wear two cost me a fortune.
These swimforms are much better than the foam ones I was originally to get, and they acted like a sponge, so when you came out of the water your boobs were down at your ankles, and not a good sight when you have a lovely baywatch lifeguard at the pool !
xxx