For many women, getting fitted for a bra after having a mastectomy can be a very emotional time. Staff members at K&J’s Complete Woman in Seven Fields urge women to bring someone with them to their appointment.

“You don’t know what to expect,” store manager Kelly Graham said. “You’ve had this breast surgery, maybe you’ve been through chemo and radiation, and you don’t know what this is going to be. You’re scheduling a fitting for a prosthesis, nobody seems to know what that is unless they’ve had a friend or family member go through it.”

Graham said K&J’s is one of a few stores in Butler County that offers products and services for women who have had a lumpectomy, a mastectomy or a double mastectomy as part of breast cancer treatment.

The business offers a wide variety of products to accommodate each unique body and health journey, including custom mastectomy bras; custom and ready-to-wear breast forms; wigs and other head coverings; compression bras, vests and stockings; and more.

“K&J’s, to me, is top-tier in service, information (and) in caring,” Graham said. “There are facilities out there that have no inventory, so a woman comes in and they are doing a measurement and ordering something out of a book and it doesn’t fit. K&J’s has inventory to try on, because no two women fit in the same size or same style of garment.”

As K&J’s nears its second anniversary, it continues to expand and provide many products and serve women battling breast cancer with kindness, empathy, mutual battles and comfortable garments.

“A lot of women who have been through breast surgery and radiation don’t realize that that’s even an item that they can get,” said Graham, who is a certified mastectomy fitter.

The Seven Fields store is full of products to try on during a scheduled fitting. According to Graham, many times women can walk out the door with a bra and prosthetic or a wig, but sometimes they have to order something to be custom-made.

According to Graham, about 85% of women purchase and use an “off-the-shelf” prosthetic, one that doesn’t need to be customized for a specific body.

However, the other 15% have benefited from purchasing a new product from K&J’s, a custom-made breast prosthetic. The custom prosthetic is “lighter, cooler and more comfortable” than off-the-shelf products.

Due to the shape of a woman’s chest after surgery, the flat back of the off-the-shelf prosthetic doesn’t sit against the chest wall the way it should. In these situations, a fitter will scan the client’s chest to make a custom prosthetic that will fit “like a puzzle piece.”

Not every insurance provider will pay for the custom prosthetic at this time. However, K&J’s is dedicated to making sure every woman gets the product she needs.

According to Graham, if insurance doesn’t pay for the entire custom prosthetic, the store owners will waive any copay or lower the price to something more affordable.

“They want you to have this product,” Graham said. “That’s another reason why I think K&J’s is very unique, because no other facility would do that. It’s their gift to you; we don’t want a woman to pay more than she can pay.”

According to Graham, Kathy Garrison founded K&J’s after beating breast cancer three times in the 1980s and always wanted to have at least three stores to serve a large area. She first opened the McMurray location over 30 years ago.

“When (Garrison) had her full mastectomy, her experience prompted her to decide to open her first store,” Graham said. “As successful as it became and the need grew for women, she expanded to Monroeville and then she expanded out here.”

Multiple women who work at K&J’s have fought and won personal battles with cancer, including Graham and Lynne Harper, another certified mastectomy fitter.

Years ago, Graham had a lumpectomy and was diagnosed with early-stage uterine cancer. Harper was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2018.

Before working at K&J’s, Harper was a social worker for 40 years, working with troubled children. When she was in the middle of her chemotherapy treatments, she was fired from her job. She was friends with Kathy Garrison’s daughter, Kirstin, and came to her looking for a wig. Harper left that day with more than a wig — she left with a job offer, and has worked with the company since.

“Mastectomy is the main thing we do; the other services are to complement and help,” Harper said. “We look at the lady as a whole person and figure out what we need to do to make her feel the best and feel that she looks the best.”

Graham describes herself as a “big advocate” for bringing along to the store somebody who “knows you best,” such as a spouse, a family member or a good friend.

“Whatever it takes for a lady to be comfortable, because it is an emotional moment,” Graham said.

Before becoming a certified fitter, Graham was a therapist and worked with teenagers for years. After her children were born, she needed a change of pace.

“I felt that I could still do things I was trained (for), to offer counseling, support, therapy in a sense, to these women,” Graham said. “It was a different avenue, a different support, but it was a job that I fell in love with very quickly because you saw the difference you made in these women’s lives.”

Both Graham and Harper said they believe that their previous careers and their experiences with cancer give them the ability to create a welcoming and empathetic atmosphere while clients go through a difficult chapter of their lives.

“I think the social work helps, because it is just a way that you know how to talk, read and connect with people,” Harper said. “They need somebody that is going to hear them.”

For someone who has just had surgery, it is recommended to wait at least four to six weeks to allow the healing process to run its course.

“We have to let the body heal, and that’s many a time the most difficult part of the story for a woman, that they have to wait,” Graham said.

According to Graham, this location began selling wigs about a year ago.

There are multiple styles, both long and short, as well as baseball caps with hair along the side and other head coverings to keep warm. Wigs can be bought as is or, if the style is right but not the color, the desired color can be ordered.

All of their wigs are made from synthetic hair to cut down on costs for the clients. According to Graham, their wigs cost $200 to $700.

The baseball cap with hair is a popular and affordable alternative, costing $85.

“We try to think of every piece to that puzzle that a woman might need,” Graham said. “We always hope that you don’t need some of those extra pieces, but we want to have them here in case you do.”

Over the past 12 or so years, there have been more choices of garments for women who are fighting or have survived breast cancer. Graham has been a mastectomy fitter for 22 years and has seen this growth of options firsthand.

“Years ago, your bra choices were white or beige, and you didn’t have bathing suits, tank tops, camisoles and things like that,” Graham said.

A common misconception that Graham has seen involves individual readiness to move forward during the process of healing after breast cancer surgery.

“Not all women handle this procedure and this outcome the same way; that’s why I say it’s not cookie-cutter,” Graham said. “One woman might be emotionally ready to get her bras and prosthetics and move forward, (but) the next woman is not. The misconception is that it’s easy and simple.

“I think for a lot of women, they need a support group to go to, they need family and friend support, and I wish that was focused on more.”

On Oct. 11, K&J’s will hold an open house event from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the store, 665 Castle Creek Drive Extension in the Phoenix Plaza in Seven Fields. At this event, prosthetic representatives will be present to discuss their products, give fittings and make recommendations for products.