Bradford nipple tattooist joins NHS to help post-op cancer patients

Lucy Thompson founded the Nipple Innovation Project, offering permanent 3D nipple tattoos

Breast cancer patients in Bradford are to be offered nipple tattoos following surgery, thanks to a partnership between a local charity and the NHS.

The service used to be offered to patients by Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, but had to pause it during the Covid pandemic.

The trust said it had now teamed up with Lucy Thompson from Cullingworth-based Nipple Innovation Project (NiP).

Ms Thompson, 34, said it was a "significant step forward".

About 300 patients are treated for breast cancer in Bradford each year, with the majority retaining their nipples.

However, the areola, the area of skin around the nipple, can be tattooed to improve its appearance after surgery.

Lucy Thompson works from her studio in Cullingworth, West Yorkshire

Ms Thompson, a medical tattoo artist who also provides restorative body art after operations, including toenails and designs to cover scalp scars, said: "This is what people often call the cherry on top.

"It allows them to take control of the end of their journey and to be able to look in the mirror and just feel normal again.

"We always said that ideally we wanted to take over this service from the NHS - so honestly this is a dream come true."

She added: "This partnership signifies a significant step forward in making realistic and long-lasting nipple tattoo services more accessible to breast cancer survivors within the UK healthcare system."

Alex Beaumont said it was important to be able to "look in the mirror and like what you see again"

Alex Beaumont, 42, from Otley, who has been given a nipple tattoo by Ms Thompson, said it was the final thing she needed before she felt she could move on.

"You feel as if you have kind of been taken apart, and to rebuild yourself afterwards," she said.

"It seems like such a little trivial thing at the end of it when you talk about it, but people just don't realise the power of being able to look in the mirror and like what you see again."

Catherine Tait, breast cancer surgeon and multi-disciplinary team lead at St Luke's, said: "We are committed to enhancing the patient experience."

"Nipple tattooing delivers the 'finishing touch' for our patients who have had reconstructive surgery after breast cancer," she added.

"These tattoos can have a profound impact on a survivor's emotional wellbeing and body image, and 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."