'Scars are a badge of survival': Woman runs NYC Marathon topless, baring mastectomy scars

A businesswoman in her 30s from the United States has drawn widespread attention after completing the New York City Marathon topless, openly displaying the scars from her breast cancer surgery.

According to Newsweek, Lauren Spizzia, 33, a businesswoman and influencer from New Jersey, ran the full 42.195-kilometer course at the 2026 TCS New York City Marathon on Sunday (local time), finishing in 4 hours, 54 minutes and 4 seconds.

Spizzia ran through the streets of New York wearing only a short bolero jacket — no bra top — baring her chest throughout the race. She said the course felt like "the perfect stage" to send a message, as it passed by the hospital where she had received breast cancer treatment.

"If I was going to bare my body for a purpose, I wanted to do it in front of as many people as possible, right there where I had my surgery," she said. "This is absolutely not for sexual purposes or to attract the male gaze."

"It's quite the opposite," Spizzia said, adding that her goal was "for women to take charge of their own health and speak up for themselves and for women's health."

Spizzia was diagnosed with breast cancer in November 2024 at the age of 31. She went on to undergo 16 rounds of chemotherapy, eight rounds of immunotherapy, a mastectomy and reconstructive surgery.

Though she had never been a runner, she began walking every day during treatment to build her strength, gradually working up to longer distances — and ultimately to a full marathon.

"The first time I changed clothes in a locker room after my mastectomy, I instinctively hunched over to cover my chest," Spizzia said. "I made a promise to myself that I would not let shame dictate how I carry myself. Finishing a marathon with my scars on display is how I keep that promise."

"These scars are the medical marks that were necessary to save my life — a badge of honor for having fought cancer and survived," she added.

Reactions along the marathon route were mixed: some spectators were visibly shocked, while many others cheered her on. "A lot of people were surprised to see me, but far more were supportive and moved," Spizzia said. "I am so much more badass now than I ever was before."

She said the experience showed her exactly what her body was capable of, and went on to say she hoped to give hope to survivors still in treatment while urging women who may one day face a breast cancer diagnosis to take their health seriously.