Physician Response
“I understand that you have PC, are interested in getting a tattoo, and want to know if there is any contraindication to the tattoo given your condition. This is actually a complicated issue as there have been no reports in the literature from which we can draw and none of the patients we have enrolled in our registry have reported getting a tattoo, much less the outcome. However, based on our current understanding of the cause of PC, you should probably use care. We know that biopsies performed on PC patients heal fine – maybe slightly slower, but usually without any worse scarring. This suggests that the tattooing process is unlikely to be much different on your skin long term than on non-PC patients. On the other hand, you should use care in selecting the site of the tattoo, because there are certain places, like the foot, hands, and possibly buttocks/knees that may not heal as well and you may be left with a bit of thickening in the area of the tattoo that persists for quite a while, maybe indefinitely. Finally, I do not want to fail to mention that it is very important that, if you choose to get a tattoo, you select a reputable business because many of these establishments are not hygienic and many innocent people have been infected with untreatable viruses due to exposure during the tattooing process.”
Sancy A. Leachman, MD, PhD Medical Advisor PC Project
