Words by Smiley Team
Learning how to check your chest is a vital step in the detection and early treatment of breast cancer.
But for trans and non-binary people chest checking can be a traumatic and anxiety-triggering experience.
So breast cancer awareness charity CoppaFeel! has joined forces with Live Through This, the UK’s only LGBT+ cancer charity, to create a set of chest-checking posters and a webpage aimed specifically at trans and non-binary people.
Breast cancer can affect people of any age or gender and while everyone is different CoppaFeel!’s chest-checking message is the same for people of all genders - and the charities hope that the new posters and resources will help to address some of the specific barriers faced by trans and non-binary people.
Rico Jacob Chace is the director of TransActual UK CIC and took part in the focus groups which informed the new resources. Rico commented: “As the society we live in becomes more inclusive the healthcare provided should reflect the patients.
“Without access to inclusive resources members of the trans and non-binary communities, who are just as susceptible of contracting cancer, will be unaware of how to manage and potentially mitigate the risks.
“Live Through This and CoppaFeel! have created this forward-thinking and inclusive resource with the help of focus groups of the people it's aiming to serve. Focus groups and consultation sessions work, and it shows in the final product.
“These resources will help the trans and non-binary communities have the same quality of life as the rest of society.”
Sinéad Molloy, head of marketing at CoppaFeel! added: “We made a deliberate choice to move away from typical representations of breast cancer symptoms, which use gendered illustrations.
“We wanted to represent the signs of breast cancer in a way that avoided reinforcing what any person's body ‘should’ look like.
“We worked closely with a focus group of trans and non-binary beneficiaries to develop fruit-based images as a playful nod to the variety of ways people’s chests might look.
“Your chest might be big, small, firm, saggy, hairy or smooth - and these are all natural and healthy ways for it to be.”
The posters will be complemented with an online resource providing guidance about changes during transition, stories from young trans people and answers to some common FAQs.
To find out more visit CoppaFeel!’s website or follow them on Twitter.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License
