Ford’s No-Cost SupportBelt Highlights Breast Cancer Awareness Month

Each year in the United States, more than 100,000 women and men undergo mastectomies, and wearing a seatbelt tightly fastened across their chests can be extremely agonizing. That can lead to avoiding seat belts or avoiding car travel entirely. Ford has helped develop the SupportBelt as a solution.

After a double mastectomy, Lynn Simoncini, a creative director at VML, couldn't find a product that solved her seatbelt dilemma. She teamed with Ford experience design director Emily Obert to develop a solution and soon they were on their way to a prototype.

The SupportBelt uses a foam core wrapped in recycled plastic fabric to relieve seatbelt pressure and is easily installed around a standard seat belt. It was developed with patient feedback and according to Ford, "offers a practical and comfortable solution for a significant population of mastectomy patients."

Ford is offering the SupportBelt at no cost starting now as a part of the company's support of breast cancer awareness through its Ford Warriors in Pink® program.