Lavenham areola tattooist determined help breast cancer patients with fund-raising event for Tata Foundation

For many breast cancer patients, one of the greatest challenges is the feeling of losing a part of themselves as a result of their treatment.

But, a growing number of people are now training in the unique art of three-dimensional areola tattooing, to help those who have lost their breasts after a mastectomy to feel whole again.

Lavenham beautician Sarah St Ledger is one of those artists, who has experienced first-hand the positive reactions from cancer patients who received these tattoos.

Now looking to give back, she is hosting a special wellness day fund-raiser in the village next week, to raise money for the Tata Foundation.

The charity not only helps to fund areola tattoos for women and men who may otherwise be unable to afford them, but also helps to train new artists to administer them.

Sarah, who runs The Beautanical Garden out of her home in Meadow Close, said that she had organised her fund-raiser to coincide with Breast Cancer Awareness Month in October.

“I’m a beauty therapist by trade and started doing it out of school,” she said. “It was my auntie who got me into permanent make-up, because she has alopecia.

“I started training in 3D areola training a few years ago and recently worked with the Tata Foundation, so I’m now one of their artists.

“A lot of my job is making people feel better, so that’s why I wanted to get into it – to give something back. Touch wood, I haven’t experienced breast cancer in my family, but I have friends who have.”

3D areola tattooing is a process of using needles and coloured ink to create a realistic image for somebody who has had one or both of their breasts removed while being treated for cancer.

The Tata Foundation, which helps patients to access the service, was founded by medical tattooists Gemma Bowers and Vikki Clark – the latter of whom has experience of a mastectomy.

Sarah said the practice of areola tattooing was difficult to promote, because most social media algorithms interpreted the tattoos as nudity.

However, from the patients she has worked with as part of her Tata Foundation training, she described an overwhelmingly positive response from those who had received the tattoos.

“The majority of the women I have worked with, afterwards, they say it’s the end of their journey,” said Sarah. “It’s as if it completes their treatment process.

“What’s nice about this is that it’s away from hospital. They might have it six months after treatment, so it’s the finishing moment for them.

“It brings so much joy and happiness, because it makes them feel like themselves again.”

Inspired by her passion for wellness, Sarah will stage a charity wellbeing event in Lavenham Village Hall on Saturday, October 5, from 10am to 1pm, with a target of raising £1,000.

The fund-raiser will include a one-hour yoga session led by instructor Carmelle Rudder and an hour of crystal sound bath therapy with Jo Saunders, as well as a cake sale and refreshments.

To book tickets, which cost £30 per person, contact Sarah by calling 07891 148262 or email thebeautanicalgarden@gmail.com.