Until this year, Jane Murray was a “sun worshipper”. In her 20s, she would use sunbeds religiously, topping up her tan before going on holidays or weddings.
Though she has not used the beds in years, her love for tanned skin had her seeking out the sun whenever she could in the subsequent years.
“When I was on holiday, I would go down to the sun lounger at like 9am. I’d lie there all day until lunchtime, go up and get lunch, come back down and lie there until six in the evening,” she said.
“I would wear SPF [sun cream with sun protection factor], but by the end of the two weeks I’d get factor four or factor six, the lowest I could find, and I was practically sizzling.”
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Now aged 46, she said her attitude towards tanning and the sun changed completely after she was diagnosed with skin cancer in February this year.
She had a mole on the back of her arm that her friends and family had highlighted over a number of years. Eventually they convinced her to get it checked. But she admitted she agreed mostly to get them to stop talking about it.
“When she [the doctor] said I had stage two melanoma I honestly thought she wasn’t talking to me. I was completely shocked. I wasn’t even listening really. I just kept wondering how it happened,” Ms Murray said.
In March she underwent surgery to remove the melanoma. She asked the surgeon at the time what would have happened had she put off the mole check even further.
“He told me I would’ve been asymptomatic until I was stage four and then there would have been nothing they could have done for me,” the personal trainer from Dublin said.
She was given the all clear at the end of April, and since then has come to realise just how powerful the sun can be.
“I keep thinking how stupid it is [to do that] for a tan, and then sure it washes off two weeks later once you’re home. I knew the risks, but I kind of thought it could never happen to me. I see so many sunbed shops in Ireland now, and there are young ones using them. That’s why I want to share my story,” she said.
Speaking to mark Skin Cancer Awareness month, Ms Murray said she wanted the public to avoid sunbeds and to get any skin moles checked. Her other big message is for people to “enjoy the sun, but be smart about it”.
“Just don’t let your skin burn. You wouldn’t eat burnt toast, so why would you let your skin burn?” she said.
Skin cancer is Ireland’s most common cancer with 11,500 cases diagnosed annually. The National Cancer Registry of Ireland (NCRI) expects the number of people diagnosed with skin cancer in Ireland to double by 2040.
In 2014, the then government banned the use of sunbeds for those aged 16 and under.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin has said he would support an overall ban on sunbeds, likening them to asbestos and smoking.
The Department of Health has begun work examining this issue.
Kevin O’Hagan, cancer prevention manager at the Irish Cancer Society, said nearly nine out of every 10 cases of skin cancer were caused by UV rays from the sun or sunbeds.
“Sun safety is vital and that means protecting your skin wherever you are, home or abroad. With most Irish people having fair skin, this will burn much quicker at soaring temperatures and this greatly increases the risk of skin cancer,” he said.
“It’s also important to go to your GP if you notice any skin changes. These can be a new or changing mole, a flat red spot, a firm red lump, an ulcer or spot that is tender to the touch or rough and scaly patches.”
He said early detection was vital, adding: “The sooner skin cancer is diagnosed, the more treatment options there are and the better the chance of cure.”
