Jayme’s removing the reminders of cancer
"They're only small dots but it's something you see every time you look in the mirror."
Tattoo removalist Jayme Moses
While some breast cancer survivors opt to bare their radiation dots as a mark of survival others prefer to celebrate a clean bill of health by having them removed.
The all-too-common battle of breast cancer is an issue which hits close to home for tattoo removalist Jayme Moses and so she is offering to erase the marks from survivors free of charge during Breast Cancer Awareness Month in October.
‘‘My mum had breast cancer, Moses said.
‘‘She died from it more than 12 years ago.
‘‘I guess that’s motivated me to always help with the cause.’’
When undergoing radiation therapy to treat various cancers patients require marks on their skin to outline the treatment fields.
These permanent marks are in the form of very small tattoos, which are dots, the size of a pinpoint or freckle.
A number of dots are made and in some treatments a second set may be necessary.
The tattoos are essential to make it possible for patients to bathe on a daily basis without risking any other marks being removed that show where the radiation treatments are to be delivered.
Moses, who this year opened her New Plymouth-based business Diminish Tattoo Removal Taranaki, said it was an honour to help women remove the constant reminder of their battle.
‘‘I know the hard road on which these ladies have travelled and I want to be able to give something back.’’
Breast Cancer Foundation research manager Adele Gautier said the journey through breast cancer was a personal experience and so the lingering effects of the radiation dots would differ between survivors.
‘‘Some people they are happy to keep a reminder and a badge, if you like, of what you’ve been through.
‘‘But for some people they just really want to put that behind them completely,’’ she said.
‘‘They’re only small dots but it’s something you see every time you look in the mirror and some people want to leave that in the past.’’
Moses said the laser removal treatment took only a matter of seconds.
After an initial consultation, she was able to apply numbing cream and zap the marks, a process which she said would cause only ‘‘minor discomfort’’ for the patient.
‘‘It’s very quick,’’ Moses explained. ‘‘It takes longer to set up the equipment.’’