RENOVA MEDICAL WEAR Mastectomy Recovery Shirt with Drain Pockets

I initially purchased this top in a black size XL and later ordered a second in blue size L. The shirt is true to size. You may want to consider ordering a size up if you will have four drains just so you'll have extra room. The drain pockets are a MUST! After a mastectomy, you will not feel like pinning your drains to the inside of your shirt. I don't think I would have had the strength to manipulate a safety pin for a couple days after my surgery.In comparing it to a size L, 100% cotton, button-up top of another brand, this is what I found:The fabric is light and breathable. It didn't fade and didn't seem to draw up after being machine washed & dried. It has kept its shape and the fabric is not showing signs of wear after being washed every 2-3 days for two weeks.I found that the drain and tube material move across this fabric with much less resistance than with 100% cotton fabric. That's huge when you have limited range of motion and limited movement & strength in your arms & hands. It also enables the drains to come out the pockets more easily.The depth of the pockets was perfect - not too shallow that you worry your drains will come out but not so deep that your drains tip over or are too far inside to easily access.The tab that holds the drain tubes was an unexpected plus! It keeps movement of your drain tubes to a minimum, which helps keep you comfortable, but doesn't restrict them so much that they can't move when they should. If your tubes stretch from being stripped, it keeps them up under your shirt instead of hanging below the hem line where they might possibly be sat on or caught on something else due to being exposed. It also eliminates the need to pin your tubes to your shirt. ***Note - the picture of the product shows two drain tube holder tabs above the pocket. The shirts I received had only one above the pocket, but it easily held both tubes.Even if you only have two drains, having a shirt with four pockets is great! Once two of my drains were removed, I was able to choose whether having the drains in front or to the sides worked better for the position I was in.The plastic snaps were much easier to use than buttons. They are low profile, large enough to handle easily and snapped with minimal effort but stayed snapped securely. The tube tab also secures with a snap on one end of the tab. If you are considering another brand of shirt with tabs, make sure the tab opens at one end. Some other brands have tabs that are sewn down on both ends. Basically, they are useless unless you want to hang the tubes from them with a safety pin.I honestly can't think of any negatives to this shirt. An outer pocket might have been an added bonus but definitely not a necessity. The price point is a little higher than I would have expected, but was close to what the others ran.Bottom line is that for cost, quality, functionality, durability and ease of use, this shirt is the best choice!!

I ordered several of these to wear after I had top surgery, as I was really nervous about having drains and "messing them up" in some way. These were really, really perfect for my drains and I wore one shirt straight home from the hospital, even. There are snaps to hold your tubes in place and two pockets on each side so you can gauge which pocket is better for your drain to go into for your comfort - I put it in the frontmost one as, even though I was sleeping on my back, I was worried about rolling onto my drains at night while sleeping in this (guess what: you really don't roll around at that point in recovery, but I digress).What I wanted to note was that my primary reason for purchasing was definitely to help with drains, I actually found that they were still a really good idea to wear once my drains were removed because it's just easier to wear in general. Honestly, I'll probably keep wearing them for a long time just as around-the-house kinda shirts even when fully healed.There's only one thing I wanted to note for you: I didn't find the snaps to be overly difficult to deal with for the most part but they don't unsnap with as much ease as I'd expected. I kind of had a vision of almost being able to pull the shirt apart in one gesture but the snaps are stronger than that. Maybe that's a good thing for you, but I know on the day of surgery I had a little trouble just snapping them. Only a tiny bit, though!

I had the unfortunate experience of being diagnosed with breast cancer this year. I chose to undertake a double mastectomy and DIEP flap reconstruction, which required me to have 4 JP drains for six weeks. Out of the two types of recover shirts (ie, shirts with multiple inside pockets to hold JP drains), this shirt was the best. The pockets are well sized and well placed. The snaps in the front were easy to use and comfortable to wear over sensitive skin. Near the end of having the drains, I kept wishing I had ordered 10 of these shirts instead of the two I bought before surgery. I ended up sleeping in these shirts because the material was so comfortable and didn't get too hot. Because it doesn't have a collar or a front pocket (if the shirt is posing as a pajama top), you can easily wear this shirt under another like a cardigan or baggier collared shirt if heading outside your home.