I'm a statistic...

Today I became a statistic.

After dodging skin checks my entire adult life (yes, I am a complete idiot), I finally put on my big girl panties and went to see a specialist.  The result of this was that today I had to have two excisions ie. chunks of flesh the size of the top of your finger cut out. 

That's going to hurt when the numbing wears off!
No pic of the one one my back, you get the drift from this one.

Now it didn't hurt (except for the local anaesthetic needles), and it still doesn't yet, but it will.  A small price to pay for peace of mind.

Now I just have to wait a week for the pathology results, but the surgeon believes they were Basal Cell Carcinomas.  Bad enough but not lethal.

The damage was done when I was much younger.  These days I cover up, wear sunscreen, a hat, sunnies.  But I didn't always.  That was part of my illogical reason for avoiding the subject, I was convinced I was riddled with skin cancers, so I ignored it all together.

Now, with all the zeal of a reformed smoker (yes, I am one of those too) I will preach to everyone who will listen.

Rather than listening to me though, it's best to go to the source, in this case

The Cancer Council Queensland. 

"Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in Australia, with 80 per cent of all cancers diagnosed in Australia being skin cancer.
Queensland has the highest rate of skin cancer in the world. More than 430,000 Australians are treated a year for skin cancers. Of these, over 10,500 new cases of melanoma are diagnosed. Each year there are around 1600 deaths from melanoma and non-melanoma skin cancer.

Preventing skin cancer

The major cause of skin cancer is too much exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation from the sun. Skin can burn in as little as 15 minutes in the summer sun so it is important to protect your skin from UV radiation.
Skin cancer is largely preventable. Be SunSmart. Protect yourself against sun damage and skin cancer by using a combination of these five steps:

"

 

 

So be brave, get checked, use common sense and follow the guidelines.

 

Love Jo xxx