The former Countdown presenter also said she doesn’t want people to feel sorry for her
Carol Vorderman has opened up about a cancer scare following “many merry years” of extreme sunbathing. The 63-year-old said it was a frequent habit during her younger days.
She previously said: “Oh God, yes. I was burning away merrily for many, many years. I’m of the generation where we started to sunbathe – my mother’s generation didn’t. We were also caught in the formative years, the 60s, 70s, 80s, where we had absolutely no idea of what sun protection was – you just couldn’t buy it. I think it was the 90s that began. “So in all of our youth we were encouraging each other to sunbathe doused in cooking oil,” she confessed. Carol had a skin cancer scare at around the age of 50, as reported by the Liverpool ECHO.
After noticing changes in her skin, she sought advice from a dermatologist who sent off a biopsy for testing. The results revealed precancerous cells. Carol said: “I had no symptoms, nothing like that” but stressed that she doesn’t want people feeling sorry for her – but would rather they followed her advice around sun protection. Following the removal of the cells, Carol now has an annual check-up and is diligent about using SPF.
She said: “In many ways, the damage is already done, but I don’t sunbathe now, I cover myself up”. Devastatingly Carol lost her mum to cancer in 2017. She had been afflicted by three different types, with melanoma being the final battle. Carol said: “Not a single time in her life did she sunbathe – my mum had a different skin to me, she had moles, I don’t. I know that makes you much more prone to melanomas.”
