After Stace Donaldson’s mastectomy, she began tattooing her left arm to tell the story of her breast cancer journey and now she offers free tattoos for other women who have been through the challenges of breast cancer.
When she was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2021, there were Covid-19 restrictions and she was forced to go to treatments alone, before undergoing a mastectomy the following year.
She had always been arty and those first tattoos on her arm were done using the “stick and poke” method as she drew her story. When she bought a machine, others began asking for tattoos and before long it had turned into a fully-fledged business, Pins & Needles.
In between paying clients, she covers the scars of mastectomies with something beautiful and puts a smile on the faces of her breast cancer clients.
“I really wanted to be able to give back because of the opportunity it gave me,” she says. “You certainly don’t feel pretty (after a mastectomy). This gives people their confidence back and makes them feel pretty. We have a fair bit of fun at the same time.”
While a tattoo is an artistic way of covering mastectomy scars, Stace says women get tattoos after breast cancer for multiple reasons, including honouring their journey and celebrating their strength.
She says cancer puts life into perspective and “the one thing I love about cancer is it gave me balls.”
Cindy McIntyre has had a double mastectomy and the scars across her chest are now being covered by a work of art that she is proud to show off.
She was just 34 when she rolled over in bed and something hurt. She discovered a lump the size of a golf ball in her breast and a mammogram found 14 other lumps. Within a week the cancer had begun to spread through her lymph nodes and into her armpit.
Six rounds of chemotherapy were followed by a mastectomy of one breast. The size of her remaining breast left her unbalanced, affecting her centre of gravity, she says. Two years later, that one was also removed.
The biggest challenge for her was self-image. Getting a tattoo across her mastectomy scars was preferable to breast reconstruction, especially with the prospect of more surgery and months of recovery. While her tattoo has yet to be filled in with colour, her smile says it all.
Stace says her free tattoos are her way of bringing people some joy after they have battled cancer and the idea has evolved quite naturally.
“I am quite a spiritualist person and a firm believer it happened for a reason. I’ve had so many blessings that it’s only fair I give back.
“We need to go back to ‘it takes a village’. A lot of people feel quite isolated, so the more people we can get together and make sure they’re supported, the better.”
Along with her offer of free tattoos - Tats for Tits - which includes women with the BRCA gene (hereditary cancer gene), she also donates vouchers for local fundraisers.
