11/07/2026
Cecilie Flatval was a mother of three who was diagnosed with metastatic bre@st cancer at the age of 42. Unlike many bre@st cancer patients, she knew her illness could not be cured. Yet what troubled her most was not only the diagnosis itself. It was how invisible people with incurable cancer often felt.
While most breast cancer campaigns focus on survival, treatment, and recovery, those living with terminal diagnoses can sometimes feel left out of the conversation.
She agreed to become the model for a public statue that would represent people living with incurable breast cancer. She chose to be portrayed exactly as she was, including the scar left by her mastectomy.
The bronze sculpture, titled "Cecilie," was installed in central Oslo near Norway's Parliament and has been described as the world's first public statue of a woman living with incurable bre@st cancer.
For Cecilie, the project was about more than herself. She wanted future patients and families to know they were seen. She lived long enough to see the statue completed before passing away in April 2023.
Today, the monument stands as a reminder that not every story is about defeating disease. Sometimes it is about being seen, remembered, and treated with dignity.
