Hello folks.  Here are the promised excerpts from "Dressed to Kill: The Link
Between Breast Cancer and Bras."

The authors, two medical anthropologists, interviewed over 2,056 women who
had been diagnosed with breast cancer, and 2,674 women who had no diagnosis
of breast cancer.  They then compared various lifestyle variables between
the two groups.  That's the extent of their methodology and *statistics* --
just percentage differences between the two groups.  They point out that
some of the women in the undiagnosed group may already have breast cancer,
or will develop it.

Age distribution:  no difference (30-79 for both groups, most between 40 and 70)

Income distribution: no difference

Occupation involving exposure to toxins: no difference, but most women had
no idea if their jobs included exposure to toxins

Are you comfortable with the size and shape of your breasts without a bra?
Standard group: 18% yes
Cancer group:    5% yes

[Note how many women in both groups don't like the way their breasts look
without a bra!]

Do you select bras to shape or accentuate your breasts?
Standard group: 74% yes
Cancer group:   87% yes

Other than price, what is the most important feature you look for when
buying a bra?
Standard group: 30% appearance, 51% comfort, 19% both
Cancer group:   62% appearance, 25% comfort, 13% both

Does your bra occasionally feel tight or uncomfortable?
Standard group: 28% rarely, 55% sometimes, 17% always
Cancer group:   48% rarely, 34% sometimes, 18% always

Does your bra ever made red marks on your skin or cause irritations?
Standard group: 25% rarely, 52% sometimes, 23% always
Cancer group:   14% rarely, 46% sometimes, 40% always

How long do you wear your bra each day on the average?
Standard group: 20% < 12 hrs. daily, 80% > 12 hrs. daily
Cancer group:    1% < 12 hrs. daily, 99% > 12 hrs. daily

[Note: YIKES!]

Do you wear a bra or breast-supporting garment to sleep?
Standard group:  3% yes
Cancer group:   18% yes

Do you wear a bra?
Standard group: 5% no
Cancer group:  0.24% no

Have you breastfed:
Standard group: 14% yes
Cancer group:    4% yes

The authors point out that there are many things they didn't look at that
would be of great interest in future studies, such as number of hours
wearing a bra as a continuous variable, type of bra (stretch, underwire,
standard, etc.), size of the woman's breasts (though there apparently is no
link between size of the breasts and rates of cancer), duration of
breastfeeding, etc.  They call for more research, and in the interim suggest
everyone wear a good-fitting, non-binding bra, as few hours as possible a day.

The authors are Sydney Ross Singer and Soma Grismaijer, publisher in Avery
Publishing.

Kathy Dettwyler