Medical tattoos after breast cancer could be that missing link for many Colorado survivors

A Colorado medical tattoo artist specializes in tattooing nipples on breast cancer survivors and aims to bring back a sense of normalcy.

"I know I miss my pre-cancer self. There are days [when] I feel like that life was so nice," said Saraya Hill.

Hill was diagnosed in 2023. A whirlwind journey of chemotherapy, a mastectomy and reconstruction surgeries followed.

"I cried the first time I saw myself in the mirror," she said.

Hill found herself with limited control during treatment. It's not until remission that many people feel a sense of ownership over their lives again, she says. Deciding to get a nipple tattoo is one that many survivors get to finally make for themselves, on their own timeline.

"Realistically speaking, you're getting this done, and no one is going to see them. It's for you," she said.

"There's so much emphasis placed on physical appearance for women. When that's stripped away, it really makes you look inside and try to figure out what your identity is."  

She learned a 3D aerola tattoo technique in a specialized program, then created Reclaim Ink, which could soon be her full-time career. By mixing different shades of ink, she uses shadows and builds the color to "create the illusion of protrusion, is what we call it." Hill says her clients sometimes show her pictures of their nipples or references to what they want. All this, she says, brings them back to a mental space before cancer dominated their lives. Seeing women's reactions to their new tattoos gives Hill the most joy.

She says she does this for women "to feel whole again. To feel confident. To feel like you have a little bit of yourself back." And adds that these tattoos are "kind of like the little bow on the top of the whole package."