Cancer survivor had eyebrows tattooed after losing hair during chemo treatment
AFTER surviving breast and bowel cancer, Deb knew she wanted to make one last change to feel like herself again.
DEB Lanyon has survived cancer, twice.
The Sydney woman was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2012 and a year later found out she also had bowel cancer.
She’s gone through multiple rounds of chemotherapy and has been cancer-free since 2014.
Deb knew that she would lose her hair after undergoing chemo, but says nothing can really prepare you for when those first clumps start to fall out.
“You’re under the shower washing your hair and then all of a sudden you have this clump of hair in your hand. Even though you know it’s coming, it’s still a shock,” Deb told news.com.au.
“It happens at a time in your life where everything is out of your control ... your life is controlled by doctors and hospital visits, so it might sound silly but losing your hair is just another thing you lose control of,” Deb said.
A year after she finished her final chemo treatment, Deb noticed that her eyebrows had not properly grown back.
“All of a sudden I realised my eyebrows weren’t prominent at all and I was putting on a lot of eyebrow pencil every morning to fill them in,” she said.
“Not having eyebrows definitely changes the look of your face and I just didn’t feel like me.”
A friend recommended a local eyebrow tattooing salon that specialises in clients who have gone through chemotherapy or suffer from conditions such as alopecia.
Jane Simpson runs HiBrow Eyebrows on Sydney’s lower north shore. Her client demographic is women over 50 looking to shave time off their morning beauty routines.
Many are cancer survivors like Deb.
“A lot my clients say, ‘I’m in remission but every time I look in the mirror I’m reminded that I have cancer because I have no eyebrows,’” Jane told news.com.au.
“I draw the brows on first with pencil so we can adjust the shape and they can see what they’re going to look like. People often burst into tears when they see the end result because they’re so happy and relieved.
“I remember one woman looked at herself in the mirror and I had to let her sit back for 10 minutes and just sob. She was overwhelmed with happy tears.”
The initial eyebrow tattooing session costs $500 and additional top-ups are $150 each for a darker, more defined look.
“It’s a little bit life-changing,” said Jane.
“My job is so gratifying and joyful. The change in [the client’s] faces was extraordinary. It makes people look fresher, younger and more put together.”
Deb says she loves not having to spend time drawing on her eyebrows in the morning.
“I’m so glad I decided to do it. I feel great and it made such a difference to my routine,” she said.
“You don’t want to have to be stuffing around with an eyebrow pencil in the morning. You want to spend less time on that stuff and more on the things that really matter.”
Do you have a beauty transformation story you’d like to share? Email rebecca.sullivan@news.com.au