Dear Vermont Design Works,

2007 has just barely begun -- and with a new year comes new opportunities! We hope you are excited about the possibilities 2007 can bring. Looking back, 2006 was an exciting time for Bellisse. We were all over the country, attending conferences and supporting our colleagues in the field – therapists, retailers, doctors and educators. The feedback is overwhelmingly positive about the Compressure Comfort® Bra! It is helping more and more women every year, and most importantly, earlier in the progression of lymphedema and/or persistent post-operative edema.

Now, more than ever before, we are seeing much more awareness of the problem of chest wall and breast edema/lymphedema occurring following breast cancer treatment! Some evidence:

• At the National Lymphedema Network Conference in November, Professor Neil Piller from Flinders University (Adelaide, Australia) discussed research he is embarking on entitled “Lymphoedema of the Breast -- Helped or hindered by the structure of the bra”.
• At the Oncology Nursing Society Conference in Pittsburgh we heard from many Oncology Nurses that when seeing “persistent swelling and/or hardening of the breast or trunk which may be accompanied by pain” after breast cancer treatment, most were not aware that it could be lymphedema. It was a great opportunity for those of us who understand and treat this problem to raise awareness and to share our expertise and offer possible treatment solutions!
• New studies are being conducted that will add to the lymphedema knowledge base and help guide medical professionals to earlier intervention.

So here is to a New Year, to new hope, to the improved awareness of truncal and other lymphedemas, to the professionals who can identify it and to the lymphedema therapists who can help the patients living with this condition. Let’s spread the word in 2007!