Lori’s Story
"My breasts are involved in lots of good memories... Your own history with your body is absolutely allowed to come into play when you make these kinds of decisions."
Procedures:
“My story is fairly typical in some regards, which is nice. I was a massage therapist, and at the time I had two school-aged kids,” Lori began.
For years, Lori had an arrangement with the mom-and-pop massage studio where she worked. She would take a hiatus over the summer to stay home with her children. She referred her clients out during that season. The summer of her diagnosis, the studio had been acquired by a corporate institution that was apprehensive about her prior summer workflow. As the school year came to a close and she negotiated with them, she went for her mammogram.
“The last day of school was a half day. I figured I could get my mammogram in the morning and go pick up my kids in the afternoon. That was when they found the lump,” she said.
Lori was diagnosed with ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) that stood at the border between Stage I and Stage II. The lump was high on her breast, under her armpit, with a crescent shape. While a lumpectomy was possible, it would have left her at the risk of requiring additional procedures. She would also have required radiation.
As someone who worked with her arms, Lori wanted to have as few procedures as possible. Her priorities were mobility, function, and getting back to the life she loved. Her workflow was already set up to take the summer off; she wanted a recovery that fit into that plan. Lori’s knowledge of the human body also played a key role in her decision-making process.
“I knew very early on that I wanted to go flat. I did not feel comfortable with the idea of implants, and interestingly, literally a month before my diagnosis, there was that big recall with implants. As a massage therapist, and with my knowledge of anatomy, I was not comfortable with the DIEP flap procedure. I did not want any muscles severed. It seemed like way more work, and way more surgeries, and more follow up, and it seemed like too much for me.”
Lori chose to have a unilateral mastectomy with an aesthetic flat closure. No sooner did she make the decision than she started searching for swimwear for people who were half-flat. The results were disappointing: all of the options she found sought to hide evidence of mastectomy. It did not sit right with her.
Surgery went as planned, leaving Lori with a clean, flat, smooth scar and an equally smooth recovery. She worked with physical and occupational therapists to regain her strength and mobility. Diligent adherence to her exercise regime had her back to normal within six weeks and back to work as a massage therapist in just eight weeks. She eased back into her life, but the swimsuit conundrum lingered.
“I have a background in theater, and I’ve done costume design. I started fiddling around with ideas for swimwear that said ‘this is my body, and I’m OK and letting my body tell my story as if I was telling it myself.”
Encouraged by friends and a strong community, she researched and founded Half-Flat, a company that creates small-batch swimwear for half-flat people who want to celebrate their bodies, showcased in Lori’s photos. The brand, launched in 2025, is a labor of love. It also reflects Lori’s own increasing openness.
“When I started off, I did try to be a little more discreet. I didn’t wear a prosthesis, but I would wear an infinity scarf or a textured shirt to give this illusion of three dimensionality where there wasn’t any. Then I realized that people don’t pay too much attention to other people’s bodies.”
So began a movement within Lori to share more of her story as told by her body. She lives in Denver, which is a topless equal city, meaning that female-presenting individuals are welcome to walk shirtless if they wish. She and her husband participated in an awareness event. There, someone asked permission to take her photo for a friend who had just been through a mastectomy. She said, “yes.” According to the person who took her photo, the image’s recipient did a double take, as she did not initially recognize that Lori was missing a breast. When she did notice, she nearly cried tears of joy: that’s how happy Lori looked.
Lori continues to be half-flat and proud. She lives with the comfort of knowing that insurance would be required to cover a mastectomy on the other side should she choose it, but for now, she’s content as she is.
“My other breast also had some meaning in my history, because when I was out and dating, I was kind of a boob girl. Even though after having two children, they’ve changed their shape, it still has value to me. My breasts are involved in lots of good memories, so I didn’t have any antagonism towards it. Your own history with your body is absolutely allowed to come into play when you make these kinds of decisions. I don’t feel like I need it yet.”