A Bra for Life
June 23, 2004
About three dozen women have so far undergone the 90-minute procedure developed by Ziya Saylan, who operates in the western German town of Düsseldorf. He uses a mesh made from titanium that's apparently not harmful to the body and has already been used for hernia surgery.
Once implanted, the mesh supports the breast from below. Saylan says that the operation is an option for women of all breast sizes, although he's told reporters that it works best for "women with small, sagging breasts."
While Saylan encourages his patients to keep wearing bras for about six months after the operation, he promises them firm forms sans bra in the end. Not too firm, though, as he said in an interview with a beauty magazine: "A bosom that's too firm can look artificial. We're going for a natural appearance. Nice breasts can sag a little, as Leonardo da Vinci already discovered."
Some of his colleagues caution that the implant makes it impossible for women to check their breasts for tumors themselves. "There can be some problems with that," Saylan told DW-WORLD, but said that regular mammograms or x-rays would still help to detect cancerous growths at an early stage.
Still, Saylan's unlikely to convince a huge amount of women to abandon their bras. At a price tag of €7,000 ($8,450), the operation costs about as much as 150 "bust-holders," as bras are known in German.