TEL AVIV (ISRAEL) – Wearing just a pink blazer sans a shirt beneath, Israeli performing artist Eylon Nuphar remains scarred, yet proud, as she strikes a pose for the cover of a women’s magazine one month after she had both breasts removed.
The 49-year-old did not opt for breast reconstruction post surgery and she hopes the shoot for the weekly ‘Laisha’ will inspire other women who go through similar ordeals.
“It’s a very personal choice. I guess I’m brave enough to do it and carry my scars and love them but I am only brave because I know it will help other women,” she said.
Nuphar has a BRCA gene, which is rare and is associated with an enhanced risk of breast and ovarian cancer. When she was 33, she was first diagnosed with breast cancer and had to undergo chemotherapy, a lumpectomy and radiation.
When it relapsed after 16 years, she opted for a double mastectomy, but decided she would no longer go under the surgeon’s knife.
“This is something women are dealing with all over the world and they are so afraid of not going through reconstruction so they won’t have to deal with being so different and with the shame of someone looking or not looking at them, feeling attractive or unattractive,” said Nuphar.
“I chose not to do reconstruction, which makes me flat and fierce,” said Nuphar.