Cancer victim will be buried in coffin painted with breasts

WELLINGTON - A New Zealand woman dying of cancer will be buried in a pink coffin decorated with 30 pairs of breasts, a newspaper reported Friday.

Pam Hermansen, 48, of Christchurch, who was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2006, told The Press it had been a major part of her life so she wanted breasts represented at her funeral.

She said her left breast had been removed, but the cancer spread to her bones and liver and she was told in 2008 that her condition was terminal. In February, she was given about five months to live.

“It’s a bit unpredictable, but I am living, not waiting to die,” she said.

Local artist Lyn Taylor painted the breasts on the coffin made by a builder friend of Hermansen.

“I started thinking about painting ethereal boobs, but the more I painted, the more realistic they got,” she said.

“I wanted to make them subtle, but boobs aren’t subtle are they? They need to stand out. They’re beautiful boobs.”

Hermansen said she felt no fear when she saw the coffin for the first time.

“When faced with this, there is an inner strength that comes out,” she said. “I mean, I don’t really want to be in it, but I want to raise awareness for breast cancer.”