A tattoo artist who creates realistic 3D nipples has teamed up with a NHS hospital to help breast cancer patients – for free. Lucy Thompson, 34, ‘changes people’s lives’ by covering up the scars left behind by mastectomy surgery as part of her charity the Nipple Innovation Project (NIP).
NHS surgeons would previously go on a two-day training course to offer this service – but the tattoos didn’t look as realistic and would often fade quite quickly. Lucy has teamed up with the Bradford Teaching Hospital NHS Trust in West Yorkshire to offer her service to patients – which is the first time this has happened in the UK.
The mum-of-one said: “I just feel so proud and I’m so elated that we get to really make a difference. This was always the goal and it’s not been easy and it’s been really hard to make these connections.
“I feel like we’ve become a really trusted, reputable charity and we are being recognised for that. I feel so proud and excited for the future and I look forward to working with more NHS trusts through the UK.
“This is really groundbreaking to people – both men and women – who have had breast cancer. It means they can have a solution that looks real, helps them accept their bodies and enables them to move on forward after their ordeal.”
Lucy uses a range of artistic skills to create the illusion that there is a 3D nipple there on someone’s flat skin. She says this service encourages people ‘to build up their self esteem and confidence’ without the constant reminder that they’ve had cancer.
Lucy said: “People always say it’s the cherry on top of the cake as it’s the end of the journey and it’s a really positive stage. It enables them to take control of their bodies on their terms and accept their new bodies.
“They can also move forward without constant reminder that they’ve been through breast cancer. They look realistic and 3D so they look real, they don’t have to think about it if that makes sense.
“It really helps them build their self esteem and confidence back up again.” Lucy trained in tattooing realistic nipples in Texas, America in 2017 and then set up the charity a year later.
Before this, surgeons and nurses would go on a two-day training course to offer the service on the NHS – even if they had no prior experience. Lucy, who is believed to be the first tattooist in the UK of this kind, says she decided to start the charity to offer a ‘higher quality tattoo.’
She said: “As a traditional tattoo artist, I couldn’t understand why people would get a tattoo that just fades away. This is a standard throughout every hospital in the UK and beyond.
“So I started the charity because it takes two years to become a tattoo artist and a two day course to do this isn’t enough. I wanted to cover the costs of the tattoo, to offer a higher quality tattoo and to offer a UK wide directory artists who have proven experience.
“The goal has always been to take over this service from the NHS because we know the stretch and that the surgeon’s don’t have the time to do this. We’ve been advocating for this for the breast cancer community since we began really and we’ve finally made the breakthrough.”
Alongside running the charity, Lucy teaches people how to tattoo nipples at the Lucy Thompson Areola Academy. She hopes that in the future she will be able to have a tattoo artist offering this in every county, instead of people having to go through the NHS.
Lucy, of Bradford, said: “We really need to get more artists doing the work as we know it’s possible to connect with the NHS. We are seriously looking for tattoo artists and permanent makeup artists who are already offering this service to a high quality level or who are willing to train.
“Then we can have at least one artist in every county and can contact more NHS trusts and take over the service. We know it hasn’t been prioritised due to cuts, which we totally understand because it’s not life saving treatment.
“But with the support of the NHS, we have the facility to take this service on. We just want to help more people in this way.”
Catherine Tait, a breast cancer surgeon at the NHS trust, is ‘delighted’ to introduce the service. She said: “We were naturally disappointed when we had to – understandably – pause the clinic temporarily during the pandemic.
“But we are delighted that the breast tattooing service has been restarted again as this new partnership allows us to offer nipple tattoos again as a valuable option for post-mastectomy reconstruction. At Bradford Teaching Hospitals, we are committed to enhancing the patient experience and nipple tattooing delivers the ‘finishing touch’ for our patients who have had reconstructive surgery after breast cancer.
“These tattoos can have a profound impact on a survivor’s emotional wellbeing and body image. We are delighted to make this service available again within our trust.
“The importance of this positive procedure cannot be underestimated for those who have survived breast cancer and undergone reconstructive surgery.”