For Science!

According to a report in the journal Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, and later reported on by the Los Angeles Times, wearing bras do not lead to breast cancer.  It was believed, prompted by a 1991 European Study, that by preventing the free movement of lymphatic fluids bras caused a buildup of waste and other toxic materials, which would otherwise be swept away through natural processes.  Such a buildup would results in higher instances of breast cancer among women who wear bras.  However, there was one major flaw in the study.  The researchers who conducted the study, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, were unable to find a large group of women who had never worn a bra to compare the results seen among that group against the normal population.  This is due to the it being ubiquitous for women to wear bras.  After reading reports of this study, and the drawbacks to it, I have a suggestion for these researchers in order to further the cause of science.

As common as it is for women to wear bras, it is even more common for men to not wear bras.  This is due to societal norms and gender roles among men.  It is somewhat difficult to find, among the general population in most large or midsize metropolitan areas, a large population of men who wear bras on a regular basis.  What I propose is that researchers conduct an experiment where they have men wear a bra on a daily basis for the period of a year, and then compare the rates of breast cancer among that population to the rates of breast cancer among the general male population.  The rates will be lower, due to the lower instances of breast cancer among men as well as rarity that men get checked for breast cancer, but any uptick, and the underlying reasons for that uptick, may bring a better knowledge of the link between lymphatic fluids and breast cancer.

So scientists, for science, put bras on men.  For science.