UPMC Honors Breast Cancer Awareness Month with BRA Day
By: Madison Brunner
In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month in October, University of Pittsburgh Department of Plastic Surgery and Magee-Womens Hospital of UPMC recently hosted its annual Breast Reconstruction Awareness (BRA) Day Pittsburgh. The awareness event educates women on their reconstruction options and provides resources to women who have undergone a mastectomy or lumpectomy.
Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women, but data shows that less than 25 percent of women undergoing breast cancer-related surgeries are fully aware of their breast reconstruction options or the quality of the surgical outcomes they can expect. BRA Day aims to raise national awareness and ensure all women and their families understand the reconstruction options after fighting breast cancer.
The highlight of this year’s event at Bar Marco was an art show displaying mannequin busts artistically rendered by local artists. There were a wide array of unique mannequins and paintings displayed, and an opportunity for attendees to bid on the art work.
Pat Miller, a two-time breast cancer survivor and local artist, created a mannequin for the event. Her piece of art was created using different skin colors cut out of magazines, and it symbolized her journey through breast cancer. The mannequin was created to display the beauty of diversity, Miller said, and represented how reconstruction helped her to view her physical scars as beautiful.
