She Chose To ‘Go Flat’ And Wants Other Breast Cancer Survivors To Know They Can Too

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November 2nd, 2018

Catherine Guthrie decided not to get breast reconstruction after her double mastectomy in 2009. Here she’s wearing a t-shirt from Not Putting on a Shirt, a grassroots advocacy organization that brings attention to the issue of surgeons disregarding breast cancer patients’ wishes to go flat.

Catherine Guthrie already knew a lot about breast cancer when she found a lump on her left breast at age 38.

A women’s health journalist, Guthrie had written about breast cancer patients’ experiences and had followed the latest treatment innovations. But all of that research could not have prepared her for living through breast cancer — and the choices she would have to make about her body.

In her memoir, FLAT: Reclaiming My Body After Breast Cancer, Guthrie tells of her battle with breast cancer; her relationship with her partner, Mary; and her sometimes-frustrating interactions with the medical system, specifically male surgeons.

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