Woman who had skin cancer warns of sunbed danger

A woman from Kent has warned of the dangers of excessive sunbathing and sunbed use after she had surgery on her face for skin cancer.

Levi-Mariah Verrall, 33, from Rochester, started using sunbeds when she was 16.

She described herself as "pale-skinned and freckly", but said she would "lay in the sun whenever I could".

Ms Verrall said: "We're all told about the dangers of sunbeds now, and having too much sun, but you never think it's going to happen to you."

She said she used oil for sunbathing, adding: "I didn't use high-factor sunscreen or cover up when I was out."

In 2022, her partner noticed a white patch on her face.

She said: "I thought it was just pigmentation, because it didn't look like a mole or what I took to be the usual signs of skin cancer.

"Even the GP thought it was pigmentation.

"But I wasn't happy because it just didn't look right so I pushed for some tests."

A biopsy revealed she had basal cell carcinoma, the most common form of skin cancer which develops from cells found in the deepest part of the outer layer of the skin.

For most people, this type of cancer does not spread.

It can be removed by surgery and no further treatment is required.

However, Ms Verrall's carcinoma needed a deep and lengthy incision to remove all traces of it.

Around 3,100 people are diagnosed with skin cancer every year in the south-east of England, according to Cancer Research UK.

Ms Verrall, who runs an industrial door company, said she is now passionate about urging people to look after their skin.

"What I went through was traumatising and I don't want other people to experience that," she said.

Beth Vincent, Cancer Research UK health information manager, said: "Getting sunburnt just once every two years can triple the risk of developing skin cancer, compared to never being burnt.

"Even on a cloudy day, the sun can be strong enough to burn between mid-March and mid-October."

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