A 'sunrise to sunset' tan addict was stunned when a 'beauty spot' turned out to be skin cancer - leaving her looking like a 'baby has bitten a chunk out of her face'. Jackie Hall first noticed a tiny freckle on her jawline back in 2020 after her little sister Chantelle Hopson mistook it for a splash of hair dye, but thought nothing of it as she already had a few moles.
The 41-year-old said that it turned black and itchy but as she couldn't get a doctor's appointment during lockdown soon forgot about it - until it began to aggravate her again four weeks ago. The mum-of-three sought medical help and was urgently referred to a dermatologist who removed the 8mm mole on the spot and she discovered last Tuesday that it was stage one melanoma.
The accounts assistant credits Chantelle with 'saving her life' as her skin cancer was caught in the nick of time, as she was warned that it could have spread to her lymph nodes and consequently to other parts of her body. The former travel consultant used to jet off on four beach holidays a year and would sunbathe from 'sunrise to sunset' to get the best tan possible - but has vowed to never take such risks again.
Jackie is due to have another surgery in the next few weeks to prevent the melanoma returning there for good, which is likely to leave her with a wound double the size of the original one. Photos captured by Jackie reveal her 'tiny beauty spot' turn into a 'horrible black mole' before she was left with five stitches and eventually a 'dent' on her jawline.
After a frightening experience, the single-mum is keen to raise awareness of the importance of sun protection and getting any suspicious moles checked out, as if she had left hers any longer, the outcome could have been very different. Jackie said: "I didn't like looking at anybody face on because you could see that it looked like I'd had a big chunk taken out of one side of my jaw.
"It's almost the size of a baby's mouth, to me it just looks as if a baby's bitten me or a mini shark or just something, it just looks like a bite mark. I'd prefer to be left with a large scar rather than the alternative of what it could have been, so I class myself as very lucky.
"To be honest, I wasn't thinking about me in the whole process, I was immediately just thinking of my children. I suffer with anxiety anyway, so each night I've been sitting there thinking the worst about it spreading to other parts of my body, because I was warned that it could go into lymph nodes and if it does, there's a possibility that it can spread anywhere.
"So I was panicking thinking the worst and about 'oh my God, how are my children going to be?' That's why I feel so lucky, it's only a scar on my face and I can live with that."
The devoted mum said that since the ordeal she's been too fearful to spend time in the sun and has been plastering factor 50 on her kids Max, ten, George, nine, and Hope, seven, every day before school. Jackie said: "Just before lockdown my younger sister was visiting me and she pointed out this mark on my jawline and she thought it was actually hair dye and said 'have you dyed your hair?'.
"I told her I hadn't and she said 'you've got a real funny old brown mark on your face there' so I looked in the mirror and it was a mole. And because I've got a couple of them, I just thought it had always been there and took no notice of it really.
"But then during lockdown I noticed it was getting darker, it was almost black and then it started to itch. But I just couldn't get into the doctors because noone could and I forgot about it to be honest.
"But then four weeks ago it became itchy again and I thought I'd better get it checked out so went to the doctors who made an urgent referral within two weeks to the dermatologist. They were concerned about it and took the whole mole out there and then, which shocked me a little bit because I wasn't expecting that."
Jackie received the results of the procedure last week and was told that it was stage one malignant melanoma. Jackie said: "It was the second best news I could have had - the first best would have been it was nothing and then the second best would be it's only stage one.
"Curiosity got the better of me and I went through all of my photographs from a long time ago and I came across a photo of me and noticed that I had a mark on my jaw, but it was only a freckle. It wasn't until I looked back through all of my photos I could see how big and quickly it had grown from a little beauty spot into this horrible black mole.
"They told me that it could have been sun damage and when I was younger - I used to work for a travel agency firm, so I was off on four holidays a year. When I was younger, a tan was the only thing I'd want so I used to use the lowest factors that I could. I was a bit of a tan addict.
"For me, it's always been about a beach holiday, relaxing in the sun for as long as possible, from sunrise to sunset to be honest, I was terrible. To be honest, I didn't ever think about skin cancer whatsoever, it was just one of those things that I didn't hear in young people really, I thought it was always happening to the older people, it never crossed my mind."
Jackie is having another procedure in a few weeks to remove up to another centimetre of tissue either side of the existing site, which will be sent away to ensure the margins are clear of any cancerous cells. She's been advised that it's all that will be needed to prevent the melanoma from returning to that area.
Jackie said: "I just don't want to ever take any risks again, we'll be using the highest factors and staying out of the sun during the hottest times. I'd tell people not to be afraid of the sunshine but to make sure they're wearing the highest factor possible and to not allow themselves to burn.
"I'd just say that your health and your life is more imporant than a golden tan and for people to keep themselves safe. I just wanted my friends and family to be so vigilant and check every single mole on their body and to get the slightest change checked out, because it's very scary.
"After my post, I've had some friends already saying they're going to get their moles checked and a friend's little boy had already been referred to a dermatologist about a mole on his back. That was my main goal - to spread awareness and hopefully help others that may not have paid any attention to it.
"I said to Chantelle if it wasn't for her pointing it out, I wouldn't have even looked at it to be honest, so she's the one that prompted me to keep an eye on it and go to the doctors, so I guess she saved my life. If I'd have left it for any longer it could have been such a different story."
WHAT IS MELANOMA?
- Melanoma is a type of skin cancer that can spread to other organs in the body.
- The most common sign of melanoma is the appearance of a new mole or a change in an existing mole. This can happen anywhere on the body, but the most commonly affected areas are the back in men and the legs in women.
- Melanoma is caused by skin cells that begin to develop abnormally. Exposure to ultraviolet (UV) light from the sun is thought to cause most melanomas, but there's evidence to suggest that some may result from sunbed exposure.
- The type of sun exposure that causes melanoma is sudden intense exposure. For example, while on holiday, which leads to sunburn.
- Certain things can increase your chance of developing melanoma, such as having - lots of moles or freckles, pale skin that burns easily, red or blonde hair or a close family member who's had melanoma.
