50-60% of cancer patients undergo radiation therapy. The treatment requires tiny permanent ink dots placed precisely on the skin to guide the oncologist’s aim. They are medically vital. They are also impossible to remove. For the years that follow treatment, they sit on the body as a daily reminder of the most frightening chapter in a person’s life.
70% of women who received breast cancer radiotherapy marks reported negative feelings about them. 78% said they would have preferred treatment that avoided the marks, even if it meant travelling further for care.
Fuck Cancer and Mischief at No Fixed Address launched The Mark of Life in November 2025 to address that emotional aftermath directly: not by removing the marks, but by transforming them.
The Initiative
Over 100 tattoo artists across the United States, including Scott Campbell, Jake Karamol, and Herschel Carrasco, donated their time and expertise to the programme. Each artist worked with a cancer survivor to design a custom tattoo built around their radiation marks, incorporating them into the finished design so that what was once a clinical reminder became a deeply personal piece of art.
The service is free. Survivors must be at least a year into remission with medical clearance to participate. There is no cost at any stage.
Abbe, the first survivor to receive a Mark of Life tattoo, described her experience with the radiation marks that preceded it: “It was scary as hell. Cancer gives you scars, trauma, fear. My radiation marks were a constant reminder of that. But I started to think about cancer as a teacher. Every day became precious. That’s what I had my tattoo reflect.” Her finished tattoo, a goddess-like woman surrounded by flowers and a constellation of stars, incorporates the radiation marks so completely that they are no longer visible as clinical markings.
Where the Idea Came From
The campaign originated with Vanessa de Beaumont, Associate Creative Director at Mischief, following the death of a colleague’s aunt. “As he talked about the radiation marks she carried, and as others shared similar stories, the idea started to form. By the end of that afternoon, The Mark of Life was a dozen-page deck. Everyone involved has some connection to cancer. That’s what gives this project its heart.”
The campaign film, directed by Dan DiFelice and Jackie Bao through Biscuit Filmworks, follows Abbe’s journey in documentary style, showing what the marks meant to her during and after treatment, and the emotional experience of their transformation. The film closes by directing viewers to TheMarkOfLife.com, where survivors can register for the programme, supporters can sponsor tattoos for those who cannot afford travel or related costs, and tattoo artists can apply to join the volunteer roster.
The Broader Platform
The Mark of Life is the second Fuck Cancer initiative built around the transformative potential of tattooing. The first, Personal Ink, was founded by experience designer Noel Franus and helps survivors cover mastectomy scars with custom body art. Both programmes operate on the same principle: cancer leaves permanent marks on the body. The person who survived should have the right to decide what those marks mean and what they look like.
Heather Kun, CEO of Fuck Cancer, described the initiative’s purpose: “This allows people with radiation markers the chance to turn their daily reminder of cancer into something of beauty and hope. Like with our Personal Ink program, cancer doesn’t have to leave the last mark.”
Campaign Name: The Mark of Life
Agency Name: Mischief at No Fixed Address / Film Production: Biscuit Filmworks / Directors: Dan DiFelice and Jackie Bao
Brand Name: Fuck Cancer
Location: United States (national; TheMarkOfLife.com)
