Breast Cancer Survivor Can Swim Topless in Seattle Pool

A breast cancer survivor has won the right to swim topless in a public pool in Seattle. Jodi Jaecks, who had both breasts removed in her cancer fight, was having a difficult time finding comfortable swimming suits, and since she had no breasts to cover up, appealed to swim top-free. Officials initially insisted on "gender appropriate" clothing. But the rule was countermanded by the department superintendent after he read about Jaecks in the weekly newspaper The Stranger, reports ABC News. "The staff did their job by following policy, but when the superintendent took a closer look he decided attitudes had shifted and he decided to allow this woman to swim, and to look at further cases one by one," said a spokesman for the Seattle Department of Parks and Recreation.

"I'm not an exhibitionistic kind of person. It's not my personality," said Jaecks, 45. "I don't think of this as nudity, not as it's generally perceived." Now Jaecks, who sees her fight as a political battle, is considering meeting with parks officials to "sway them to make it more of a policy decision instead of just unique to me." The Parks and Rec department wants to "hear from people who have had surgeries" and "possibly shape a policy out of that," said the spokesman. (More breast cancer stories.)