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Darlene Hoyt, 67, is photographed in the home she shares with her husband in West Yarmouth, MA. Darlene was diagnosed with stage one breast cancer four years ago during an annual mammogram. When more atypical cells were found after two lumpectomies, Darlene underwent a double mastectomy. She recently got a hummingbird tattooed on her left breast area by well-known Cape Cod tattoo artist, Mark Corliss. "I wore my mastectomy forms for three years. Once I knew I was getting my tattoo, I stopped wearing them. It just felt so false to me. Why pretend to have body parts that I didn't have anymore? For me, this artwork feels more authentic. I got to change the ending of the story, so to speak," she explains. When the tattoo project is complete, there will be a dragonfly on Darlene's right breast and some words underneath that are meaningful to her. "I love the tattoo because instead of there being an absence of something, there is an addition of something beautiful," she says.

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Julia Cumes
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Rise Above: Exploring the Many Faces of Breast Cancer on Cape Cod
Darlene Hoyt, 67, is photographed in the home she shares with her husband in West Yarmouth, MA. Darlene was diagnosed with stage one breast cancer four years ago during an annual mammogram. When more atypical cells were found after two lumpectomies, Darlene underwent a double mastectomy. She recently got a hummingbird tattooed on her left breast area by well-known Cape Cod tattoo artist, Mark Corliss. "I wore my mastectomy forms for three years. Once I knew I was getting my tattoo, I stopped wearing them. It just felt so false to me. Why pretend to have body parts that I didn't have anymore? For me, this artwork feels more authentic. I got to change the ending of the story, so to speak," she explains. When the tattoo project is complete, there will be a dragonfly on Darlene's right breast and some words underneath that are meaningful to her. "I love the tattoo because instead of there being an absence of something, there is an addition of something beautiful," she says.