To say she is walking on sunshine is an understatement. For many cancer survivors, their scars might be a painful reminder of the tough journey they've walked, but Jill Alphonso is cut from a different cloth. Not only does she openly post photos of her post-mastectomy body online to inspire others, she's probably also the first woman in Singapore to have gone topless publicly after breast cancer surgery, despite taboos.
In light of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, we speak to the 44-year-old writer and yoga teacher, and find out more about what motivates her sharing, how she stays positive, as well as the natural healing methods she swears by.
“My scars show the map of my journey as a breast cancer patient. It’s a road I share with many women.”
Jill was diagnosed with breast cancer in November 2022 after her first ever mammogram, part of her routine health check-up. She had surgery to remove one breast in January 2023. During her pre-surgery research, Jill looked for images online of mastectomy scars but found mostly cold, clinical images from doctors’ offices with no faces. While she did find pictures of women in the West posting on socials, she came across only one photo of an Asian person, and that stuck with her. She wanted to change that after her surgery.
Going ‘topless’ has also been part of Jill’s healing process. “While the decision to show one’s mastectomy scars is deeply personal, I believe that scars can take on a deeper significance. They can be a symbol of strength and resilience,” shares Jill. “Seeing them – in context, complete with the survivor’s face – is a powerful statement to others: I am not ashamed of the path I had to walk. It has been part of my story.”
According to the Breast Cancer Foundation, six women are diagnosed with breast cancer every day in Singapore. And one in six cases of breast cancer happen to women under 45 years old. “So, as you look at me, you are seeing a disease that you or someone you know could experience,” adds Jill.
“The open confrontation of my scars is, for me, the baring of my soul, in the hope that other women might gain confidence that there is life – and beauty – after breast cancer.”
You’re very open about your scars and joke about being ‘one boob less’. What are your thoughts on reconstruction?
“I have a plastic surgeon who I have spoken to at length on reconstruction. It is something I keep in my back pocket as an option for the future. But the truth is that I feel my body is perfect the way it is. I like the way I look, scars and all. I have to admit that I’ve always been part of the itty-bitty club and so often, you can’t tell, at least when I am clothed, that I am ‘one boob less’!
I have to give a shout-out to my husband of 12 years for helping build my confidence in my post-surgery life. He has always told me that I look perfect and post-surgery, he would say this to me even more often. He will often stroke the surgery site and even gently kiss it. I want to mention my husband specifically because I have spoken to other cancer patients who are rushing into reconstruction. Their husbands are telling them they don’t look the same and they are no longer attractive. My husband’s actions are a clear communication of his love and regard for me and my post-surgery body. That kind of support is crucial for any woman to build self-love.”
Social media has definitely paved the way for you to share your message. What do you post about in your cancer journey?
“My social media is all about empowering people. I first want them to know that living natural, healthy lifestyles can help anyone keep cancer at bay, or even heal from cancer. My social feeds include recipes for raw juices and foods, which can help overall health. I know to some, I come across as healthy and especially joyous, like I didn’t have cancer.
But the truth is that my quick recovery is down to much work I did on my own. I made huge lifestyle changes very quickly after receiving my cancer diagnosis. I was already vegetarian but went vegan overnight as science shows that being on a plant-based diet lowers the cancer risk and boosts the immune system. Raw foods are filled with cancer-beating nutrients as well, which is why I post recipes for those.
I hope that my feed can be a resource for how to live a healthy life. I talk about rest, getting exercise and sunlight and what therapies you can seek out. These are all essential components in wellness and self-care, whether you’re facing cancer or not.
Of course, I also post about body positivity. I love my body more than ever now – scars and all. My body carries me through life. I appreciate all it does and I love the skin I live in.”
The tone in your social feeds is joyous, especially for someone who has suffered through cancer. How have people reacted to that?
“I decided early on in my cancer journey that misery and sadness were not going to serve me. In fact, those emotions might have a negative effect on my immune system, which was clearly struggling – and failing – to fight cancer cells.
Also, there are many others who speak about the raw emotions they feel surrounding their cancer journeys. So many feeds out there talk about fear, depression and sadness in the face of cancer. I want to be a voice on the other side – one that says, you can choose to create intentional happiness for yourself, no matter what you are facing. I just want people to know that there is always a choice. After all, the only things we can control in tough situations are how we feel around them and how we greet challenges.
As to reactions to how I present myself: often, strangers – usually those who know people with cancer and newly diagnosed women – have reached out and commended my messages as inspirational. Interestingly, some friends have reacted negatively.
One or two told me that some people might take offence to my tone and that I’m downplaying the fact that cancer is a serious disease. Another told me that my feed was triggering and that it reminded her of when her mother had cancer and all the things she had done ‘wrong’ in that instance.
I feel that all emotions and reactions are valid. But I stand firm in my belief that how I present myself in my feed might be of some use to someone out there. I’ve received enough messages from other cancer fighters to know that the positives outweigh the negatives. These cancer fighters are who I need to reach the most and are the reason I am doing what I’m doing. I have a small group of cancer fighters I support and most found me through my feeds or word of mouth. And anyway, my body, my rules – my feed, my rules! #hatersgonnahate”
Was it difficult to go vegan? How long will you keep up this diet?
“Going vegan requires work. No lie! Making plant-based foods requires time and effort and a huge mindset change about what is going on to your plate. Thankfully, I had experimented with vegan, gluten-free recipes extensively as a vegetarian so it was not a huge stretch to swing that way. I’ll keep up my diet as well as all the natural therapies I do for life. I am in the best shape I’ve ever been and truly feel at my very best.
Most natural healers say that any cancer-fighter should follow a plant-based lifestyle, which is really a low-toxicity lifestyle, for a minimum of five years in order to keep cancer at bay. I know people might think ‘I can’t do this’. I also have friends who tell me they’d miss meat or dairy if they had to go vegan. I like to say that nothing tastes as good as being cancer-free!”
What therapies are you doing for yourself?
“I love contrast water therapy – a series of brief, repeated immersions in water, alternating between warm and cold temperatures. Early research has shown that this can slow tumour growth. I do saunas of about 70 deg C and ice baths at around 5 to 8 deg C. I spend 10 minutes in the sauna, then take ice dips of three to five minutes at a time. In one full session, I’ll do three rounds of that sequence. I enjoy doing this about three times a week or more.
A friend who found his cancer markers to be high followed this sequence daily. He had no access to ice baths so just did cold showers instead. In a month, his cancer markers dropped by 50 percent. That was enough to convince me that it works.
I go to a wellness centre, Soma Haus, for contrast therapies. I also go there for craniosacral therapy, which has helped with sensations around my scar tissue after surgery. As with many post-surgery patients, I had lost sensation around the site as surgery removes the tissues, but also the nerves in the breast area.
Craniosacral therapy has, in fact, helped me regain sensation – something I never expected! Many doctors tell you that sensation will never return, so this is very exciting to communicate to other breast cancer survivors.
As a Bikram yoga practitioner of 20 years and a teacher of 10, I also kept up my practice, returning to yoga just two weeks after surgery, on my doctor’s recommendation, of course. I now teach yoga classes with modifications to poses available to post-mastectomy patients.”
Celebrate Breast Cancer Awareness Month with Jill at Soma Haus, a wellness centre in Joo Chiat on October 21 from 10am to 4.30pm. She will be running a yoga class and sharing about her cancer journey with fellow survivor Arathi Devendran.
