A Glasgow hospital is collecting patients' old bras to help the less fortunate.

La Belle Forme Glasgow day surgery centre believes they could be the first medics to launch a brassier bank.

It comes after being inundated with old bras that no longer fit people after having a boob job at the clinic.

They decided instead of chucking them out they would team up with Against Breast Cancer charity who send the second-hand bras to people in need of support.

The clinic regularly does breast augmentations covering reductions, implants, trans top surgeries and more.

Glasgow Times:

Felicity Sweeney, 33, who is the lead aesthetic nurse, told the Glasgow Times: “We came up with the idea for the bra bank after noticing every time someone had a breast augmentation, they usually would hand us their bra’s and say ‘bin that’.

“Since we work with so many people whose bras don't fit anymore and had to dispose of them, we decided to put them to better use.

“Against Breast Cancer charity takes used bras and sends them out to people who need them in less fortunate areas.

“I believe we are the first hospital in Glasgow to run this sort of thing, patients and members of the public can donate to us.

“It is great because it helps the environment and people who need better support.

Every 10 minutes, in the UK, a woman is diagnosed with breast cancer.

Breast cancer cases have doubled in the last 50 years. Around 55,000 women and 390 men are diagnosed every year.

Glasgow Times:

The charity Against Breast Cancer funds pioneering research into new treatments, tools for earlier diagnosis and advice to reduce the risk of recurrence and secondary spread. Working with expert scientists we want to increase the survival rates of all breast cancer patients and ultimately, discover a vaccine against breast cancer.

Their bra recycling scheme takes unwanted or unloved bras and through a network of bra banks raises vital funds for pioneering breast cancer research.

The same bras also help to support small businesses in developing countries in Africa and around the world.

Together with recycling partners, the textile recovery project prevents these bras going into landfill before giving them a new lease of life in countries such as Togo, Ghana and Kenya, where bras remain expensive to produce locally.

 

 

Successful ventures like this provide an income for families in developing countries whilst providing employment for people living in the UK.

Any bras that are genuinely beyond redemption are dismantled and disposed of properly.

Against Breast Cancer was contacted for comment by the Glasgow Times.