Celebrating the BRAve Faces of Breast Cancer

ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. - The third annual Breast Reconstruction Awareness (BRA) Day USA, organized by the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) and The Plastic Surgery Foundation (The PSF), will take place on October 15, 2014 in cities across the country. Closing the loop on breast cancer means making sure that every woman who is diagnosed with breast cancer is aware of all of her options to heal.

"Breast cancer patients are not always told about their reconstructive options, and in turn women do not receive the comprehensive care they deserve." said ASPS President Robert X. Murphy, MD. "With our BRA Day campaign and the corresponding events across the country, our intent is to help make women aware of their options when it comes to breast reconstruction."

Breast Reconstruction Awareness Day celebrates the BRAve Faces of women and family members who have experienced breast cancer, whether directly or through a loved one. BRA Day emphasizes the need for all breast cancer patients to have an understanding of the various reconstructive options and an individualized treatment plan. This continuum of care approach brings together a multidisciplinary group of medical professionals who work together from breast cancer diagnosis through recovery in an effort to optimize care for each patient.

In an effort to make recovering from breast reconstruction easier for women, ASPS has created a free Breast Reconstruction Planner that guides patients through the recovery process, and is available for download. The easy-to-access planning tool is available at no cost and offers tips from trained plastic surgeons.

Individuals and groups are encouraged to start a BRA Day event in their area. There is no fee to participate and ASPS has a free BRA Day Starter Guide and communications toolkit available to help plan the activities. Affiliates from across the country have shared their events with ASPS and are all posted to the BRA Day Events site. Just complete and submit a BRA Day affiliate form to get started!

Breast Reconstruction Awareness Day is generously sponsored this year by MTF as a Premium Sponsor, by Allergan as a Gold Sponsor and by Sientra as a Silver Sponsor. ASPS and The PSF are grateful for the contributions and participation from these leading companies.