Going Flat: Breast Cancer, Mastectomy and the Politics of Choice
Breast cancer, if it advances, is life threatening. It is also widespread. My life was changed when I was diagnosed with breast cancer. There was much that I did not expect, including a hegemonic culture of “breast conservation.” I opted to “go flat” after bilateral mastectomy, resisting reconstruct...
| Main Author: | |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
University of Alberta
2020-05-01
|
| Series: | Imaginations: Journal of Cross-Cultural Media Studies |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://journals.library.ualberta.ca/imaginations/index.php/imaginations/article/view/29472 |
| _version_ | 1819098883928621056 |
|---|---|
| author | Abigail B. Bakan |
| author_facet | Abigail B. Bakan |
| author_sort | Abigail B. Bakan |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Breast cancer, if it advances, is life threatening. It is also widespread. My life was changed when I was diagnosed with breast cancer. There was much that I did not expect, including a hegemonic culture of “breast conservation.” I opted to “go flat” after bilateral mastectomy, resisting reconstruction plastic surgery. A politics of choice—like that demanded for reproductive rights—has yet to find similar resonance in the world of breast cancer treatment. This article considers reconstruction hegemony and the emerging movement to advance the choice to be, in words coined by a pioneering Facebook group, Flat and Fabulous. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-22T00:38:04Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-f1ef86255d644234a1e37714dd16e09e |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1918-8439 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-22T00:38:04Z |
| publishDate | 2020-05-01 |
| publisher | University of Alberta |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Imaginations: Journal of Cross-Cultural Media Studies |
| spelling | doaj.art-f1ef86255d644234a1e37714dd16e09e2022-12-21T18:44:46ZengUniversity of AlbertaImaginations: Journal of Cross-Cultural Media Studies1918-84392020-05-0111139–6339–6310.17742/IMAGE.BR.11.1.429472Going Flat: Breast Cancer, Mastectomy and the Politics of ChoiceAbigail B. Bakan0Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE)Breast cancer, if it advances, is life threatening. It is also widespread. My life was changed when I was diagnosed with breast cancer. There was much that I did not expect, including a hegemonic culture of “breast conservation.” I opted to “go flat” after bilateral mastectomy, resisting reconstruction plastic surgery. A politics of choice—like that demanded for reproductive rights—has yet to find similar resonance in the world of breast cancer treatment. This article considers reconstruction hegemony and the emerging movement to advance the choice to be, in words coined by a pioneering Facebook group, Flat and Fabulous.https://journals.library.ualberta.ca/imaginations/index.php/imaginations/article/view/29472mastectomybreast cancerreconstruction discourse |
| spellingShingle | Abigail B. Bakan Going Flat: Breast Cancer, Mastectomy and the Politics of Choice Imaginations: Journal of Cross-Cultural Media Studies mastectomy breast cancer reconstruction discourse |
| title | Going Flat: Breast Cancer, Mastectomy and the Politics of Choice |
| title_full | Going Flat: Breast Cancer, Mastectomy and the Politics of Choice |
| title_fullStr | Going Flat: Breast Cancer, Mastectomy and the Politics of Choice |
| title_full_unstemmed | Going Flat: Breast Cancer, Mastectomy and the Politics of Choice |
| title_short | Going Flat: Breast Cancer, Mastectomy and the Politics of Choice |
| title_sort | going flat breast cancer mastectomy and the politics of choice |
| topic | mastectomy breast cancer reconstruction discourse |
| url | https://journals.library.ualberta.ca/imaginations/index.php/imaginations/article/view/29472 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT abigailbbakan goingflatbreastcancermastectomyandthepoliticsofchoice |