A woman who continued to use sunbeds even after being diagnosed with skin cancer has urged others to stop before it's too late, and now regards her tanning addiction as the 'biggest mistake of her life'. Julie Elrod, 56, began using sunbeds approximately twice a week from the age of 24 onwards and would stay on for the maximum amount of time.
Julie says she just always felt 'sexier' with a tan, but unfortunately, some 12 years later she came to regret her habit after noticing a scabby spot on her forehead she just couldn't get rid of After getting it checked out by a doctor, Julie was diagnosed with two of the most common types of non-melanoma skin cancer - basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma.
Despite being diagnosed with two types of skin cancer, Julie continued her trips to the tanning salon, knowing full well how 'stupid' this was but being too addicted to stop. She likens the treatment she endured during this time to being 'burnt by a blow torch', remarking that it 'would have been less painful to cut my arm off'.
