{"id":44708,"date":"2016-10-27T15:32:32","date_gmt":"2016-10-27T20:32:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/news.medill.northwestern.edu\/chicago\/?p=44708"},"modified":"2016-10-28T09:49:31","modified_gmt":"2016-10-28T14:49:31","slug":"knitted-knockers-changing-the-pattern-of-breast-cancer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.medill.northwestern.edu\/chicago\/knitted-knockers-changing-the-pattern-of-breast-cancer\/","title":{"rendered":"Knitted Knockers: Changing the pattern of breast cancer"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong> By Anna Foley <\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"dropcap\">For Chrysanthi Koutsiviti, knitting is more than just pushing a piece of yarn back and forth between needles \u2014 it\u2019s an expression of compassion for breast cancer survivors.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m knitting with a purpose for people who need it, and it\u2019s so fulfilling,\u201d Koutsiviti said. \u201cKnitting is a way to show people love.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That love is one of the reasons Koutsiviti, along with several other women, gathered at the Currency Exchange Caf\u00e9 in Washington Park one gray afternoon in October. They turned their hobby into an expression of love by knitting soft, adjustable breast prostheses for women who have undergone mastectomies. The prostheses are affectionately dubbed \u201cknitted knockers.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><iframe title=\"Knitted Knockers\" src=\"https:\/\/player.vimeo.com\/video\/189213049?dnt=1&amp;app_id=122963\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"autoplay; fullscreen\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><!--more--><\/p>\n<p>The <a href=\"http:\/\/www.knittedknockers.org\/\" target=\"_blank\">Knitted Knockers Support Foundation<\/a> boasts nearly 200 knitting groups nationally and internationally. And though the plush prostheses have garnered quite a reputation, the foundation began with humble beginnings.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cA woman named Barbara owned a yarn shop in Maine,\u201d said Tina Miklas, a Chicago-based Knitted Knockers organizer. \u201cWhen she was diagnosed with breast cancer herself, she started knitting these prostheses, except back then, she called them \u201ctit bits.\u201d Then more and more women started requesting them, so she started the nonprofit.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Miklas said the knitted prostheses are so popular because they\u2019re a gentler alternative to traditional breast prostheses women often use after getting a mastectomy.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey slip right into your bra,\u201d Miklas said. \u201cThey\u2019re softer, and can be worn right after surgery.\u201d In fact, women often feel insecure and embarrassed following a mastectomy: The psychological effects of the surgery can lead to \u201cthe feeling of loss of personal attractiveness, low self-esteem and avoidance of social relationship,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hindawi.com\/journals\/ijso\/2011\/132461\/\" target=\"_blank\">according to researchers<\/a> at the University of Seville.<\/p>\n<p>The knitted prostheses can be customized for different breast sizes. Each one is stuffed with polyester fill, so women can decide for themselves how large each artificial breast should be.<\/p>\n<p>Miklas said knitted knockers can also be customized cosmetically by using funky yarn colors. Personal touches like that make them unique to their recipients. Regardless of the color, Miklas said that the little knitted pouches can have a tremendous impact on a women after a mastectomy.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s the simplest gesture to make a difference in someone\u2019s life,\u201d Miklas said. \u201cIt makes a person feel a little more human. I can\u2019t imagine what it feels like to lose a breast, but I think that all women are beautiful and deserve to feel that way themselves.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Knitted Knocker knitter Stephanie Warren has seen those effects up close. She said two of her close friends had been diagnosed with breast cancer.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAbout three years ago, a friend of mine found out she had breast cancer,\u201d Warren said. \u201cIt was already at stage IV. She ended up having both breasts removed.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Dealing with her friends\u2019 diagnosis and treatment was one of the reasons Warren decided to start knitting the breast prostheses.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s like when soldiers go through the process of losing a leg,\u201d Warren said. \u201cIt\u2019s kind of like a ghost limb that they feel.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The prostheses Koutsiviti, Miklas, Warren and fellow knitters created that October afternoon were donated to Sisters Working It Out, a local cancer advocacy and awareness organization. According to Miklas, the knitted knocker movement hasn\u2019t picked up speed in Chicagoland yet, but she\u2019s decided to change that.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTo my knowledge, there\u2019s not another provider in Chicago right now,\u201d Miklas said. \u201cWhen I realized that, I knew we had to do something.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>So, a group of women met up in a caf\u00e9 to knit their hearts out. While they created several knitted prostheses that day, Miklas said their job has just begun.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe have to make sure to abolish breast cancer first, but this is a good way to spend time until then,\u201d Miklas said.<\/p>\n<div class=\"featurecaption\">Photo at top: Tina Miklas explains the alternative breast protheses called &#8220;knitted knockers.&#8221; (Anna Foley\/MEDILL)<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Anna Foley For Chrysanthi Koutsiviti, knitting is more than just pushing a piece of yarn back and forth between needles \u2014 it\u2019s an expression of compassion for breast cancer survivors. \u201cI\u2019m knitting with a purpose for people who need it, and it\u2019s so fulfilling,\u201d Koutsiviti said. \u201cKnitting is a way to show people love.\u201d [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":303,"featured_media":44709,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28,29,2582],"tags":[192],"class_list":["post-44708","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general-interest","category-health-and-science","category-spring-2016","tag-promo"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.6 - 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