WIS News 10 - Columbia, South Carolina | Health Alert: Lymphedema fashion

Health Alert: Lymphedema fashion

(National) December 26, 2006 - The best new companies focus on finding a need and filling it. Three entrepreneurial women are doing just that by giving a jazzy make-over to a rather plain medical garment.

Robin Miller, 23, and Rachel Levin, 36, are young breast cancer survivors. They developed lymphedema after their cancer treatment. Levin says, "In some respects, it was more devastating than breast cancer because it's permanent, it's incurable, it's not pretty and the way that it's managed isn't pretty."

Lymphedema is excess fluid buildup that leads to swelling in the arm and hand. Patients must wear a compression garment all day, every day. Miller says, "We were sitting in a doctor's office and talking about how horrible and ugly they were and we were kind of like, you know, someone should make these and then we were just like, well we could make these."

So they teamed up with fashion designer Kristin Dudley - and with the help of Drexel University, formed a company called "Lymphe-Divas"

Levin explains, "Essentially what we're doing is building a brand. We're working with a lot of different partners to create something, to manufacture something."

The result is colorful sleeves and gloves made from high-tech fibers with unique design features. They're crafted to look good, feel comfortable and work better.

Dudley says they're working "to make sure that these stay completely medically correct while doing the experimenting with the fashion."

Plus Rachel and Robin bring a special perspective to the work because they are their customers. Levin says, "We really want to make women who have this condition feel good about themselves and feel beautiful and we each embody that in ourselves."

The designing women turned a medical necessity into a fashion accessory. The initial collection of five designs is available in various breast care specialty boutiques. For more information, click here>>

Posted 3:54pm by Chantelle Janelle