Good news for all you tattoo enthusiasts with poor judgment: There will soon be an inexpensive cream that will remove your regrettable ink without any pain.
Alec Falkenham, a 27-year-old researcher from Canada’s Dalhousie University, has been working on a topical formula that erases tattoo ink over time.
“When comparing it to laser-based tattoo removal, in which you see the burns, the scarring, the blisters, in this case, we've designed a drug that doesn't really have much off-target effect," Falkenham told CBC.
The cream, which is currently being tested on pig ears, targets ink-stained skin cells and replaces them with new, undamaged skin cells; over the course of several treatments, the tattoo will be completely gone—without any pain, scarring, or hefty price.
Though Falkenham is not sure when the cream will be available for purchase, he estimates the treatment cost will be around 4 cents per square centimeter, which is pretty good considering laser removal costs $75 per square inch. And what’s even more awesome is that the formula works best on tattoos older than two years.
Someone should definitely let the girl with the Drake forehead tattoo know. While you’re at it, you might as well inform the dude with the Seahawks back-to-back championship ink, the woman with a penis on her shoulder, and the unfortunate soul who is walking around with a crappy unicorn surrounded by dicks.
[via CBC]
