Well Suited: Beating Cancer Beautifully

For breast cancer survivors, specifically women who have had mastectomies, the swimsuit market is notoriously difficult to navigate. At least it used to be. Enter Patricia Brett — former architect, now fashion designer — who introduced a luxury swimwear line, Veronica Brett (named after her late aunt who succumbed to the disease 35 years ago) this spring, and officially changed the game.

At a very young age, Brett was aware of the role cancer played; she accompanied her father on trips to the hospital to visit her aunt. "I always knew breast cancer was in my family, but didn't know what a big part it would play until years later," she admits. After her older sister Regina was diagnosed at 41, Brett's cousins Maureen and Mary entered a high-risk study. The results — that Mary carried the dangerous BRCA1 gene that pre-disposes females to breast and ovarian cancer — were difficult to digest, but motivated them to take action. "Maureen didn't have the gene, but she put this information packet together and made sure everyone in our family had a copy," Brett explains, "I took the test and found out I had it."

The next step, a choice between a risk-reducing bilateral mastectomy or MRIs and biopsies every six months for life, was one Brett made with the support of her husband. "I wanted to see my son grow up," she says simply. "For me, a mastectomy was getting off easy because I didn't want to worry about whether I would catch it in time." And with the BRCA1 gene, Brett's odds of getting it increased from 12 percent (the risk for the female general population) to 55-85 percent. When her niece Gabe also opted for surgery, Brett began to think about other consequences of the mastectomy. "Gabe was okay with the idea of having her breasts removed," Brett says, "but she was blown away with what she thought were horrible clothing options for women who had gone through surgery." It was then that the idea for Veronica Brett was born.

In hindsight, Brett admits that her foray into fashion was a natural progression. "I realized I had saved fashion clippings from years earlier," she says of her interest in the industry, "and as an architect, I had worked with several designers, so there were all of these connections to fashion through the world of architecture." Brett's relevant projects — offices for Michael Kors and an apartment for Calvin Klein — gave her the confidence she needed to move forward. It seems though, that Brett's success is directly related her pro-active mentality, which is perfectly in sync with what seems to be the Brett family mantra: be your own advocate and take control of your life (and your health). "I said to myself, I'm an architect. If I can design a building, I should be able to design a swimsuit or bra!"

A few months later, Brett had completed construction of her first prototype (designed to accentuate all of a woman's features while solving some of the issues that come about as a result of breast surgery), which she acknowledges was a far cry from what she had envisioned: "It looked hideous!" But when she asked her sister Regina to give it a test drive, she knew she was on to something. "Regina burst into tears and said it was the sexiest thing she had worn in ten years," Brett recalls, "I knew that if this was a need for my sister, then there were a lot of other women with the same need." (A lot seems like an accurate estimate: More than 250,000 American women under the age of 40 are currently living with breast cancer.)

Shortly thereafter, Brett found herself scouring the pages of Women's Wear Daily in search of potential leads for her fledgling business plan. "I went to any lecture or event that I could find," she says, "And I started networking like crazy." The fashion community's reaction left Brett pleasantly surprised. "Because I was trying to create something for breast cancer survivors, people were so willing to help," she explains, "There was a lot of good energy behind me." Of course, the process took a bit longer than she anticipated; roughly two and a half years passed from the genesis of the idea to the launch of the line. According to Brett, it was a necessary journey: "I'm trying to make a high-end luxury product and I want it to be perfect," she explains. "I didn't figure out until after I started that swimwear is the hardest thing (to design) in the world!"

The good energy, and long hours, eventually led to an impressive line of products (next season's collection even features a bikini!) that Patricia Brett named after her father's sister and her beloved aunt Veronica. "I knew that if I was going to do this, I had to do it right," Brett says emphatically, "This wasn't just going to be about making suits for my sister and my niece. I want to reach out and help as many women as I possibly can." Even the model in these pictures (and the make-up artist at the shoot) is a survivor.

With her versatile swimwear (priced under $200) on sale in boutiques across the country (and in hospitals such as Memorial Sloan Kettering and NYU's Clinical Cancer Center in NYC) and on her website, Brett's well on her way to accomplishing that goal. But she insists that from the beginning, part of the "big plan" was to give something back. "I always felt really strongly about supporting existing breast cancer organizations," Brett explains. "Instead of starting one, I started this line where I can give a percentage to research or to not-for-profits." True to her word, Brett donated 10 percent of all of her June sales to breastcancer.org.

And she plans on continuing this pattern, through special online sales and trunk shows, in an effort to reach every corner of the breast cancer community. "I want this line to be beautiful and for beautiful women and I named it after my aunt because I also want it to tell my family story," Brett says proudly. "She left four daughters behind, two of whom are survivors, and I thought this was a great way to honor her, them and all of my family members who have been through this disease." Take note budding entrepreneurs: this is how you write a success story.

Photos courtesy of Larsen + Talbert.