30/10/2025
We recently sat down with Lucy Thompson, founder of the The Ni**le Innovation Project (NiP) to learn more about the journey that inspired her to use her skills as a tattoo artist to improve the lives of breast cancer survivors.
“I started the charity because my Auntie’s cancer journey motivated me to drive change. She’d received mastectomy tattoos by her surgeon in theatres and had a really unpleasant experience. She found it incredibly painful – more so than a usual tattoo, and it healed really poorly. It eventually all scabbed and faded away within a few months, but she couldn’t face going back again. She said at one point she couldn’t face looking at her own body because of it.
As a tattoo artist herself at the time, Lucy started researching and eventually went to Texas to learn how to do permanent 3D ni**le tattoos. “I came back and started doing them for free for anyone who wanted them post-surgery. It got to the point where there was a huge waiting list but I could only do so much especially as a single mum working for free. Both sides of my family have done a lot of charity work so I thought ‘why don’t I start a charity to cover the cost of peoples’ mastectomy tattoos and build a directory of trained artists?’ There were people that would travel hours to my studio in Bradford, but not everyone has the luxury of being able to do that, so I wanted it to be accessible to people who need it all over the country.”
NiP are now partnered with Bradford Teaching Hospitals, providing their patients with mastectomy tattoos, with more trusts soon to follow. Lucy’s goal is for NiP to be the ultimate provider for ni**le tattoos in the UK. “I know it’s bold, but I never thought we’d partner with the NHS, so I had to up my goal!”. She wants breast cancer survivors to be empowered to reclaim ownership of their bodies with the help of highly skilled professionals who can give them the quality of work they deserve. “After such emotionally taxing journeys, it’s the least they deserve.”
Read the full article on our website under 'News' 🎀
