Janet Street-Porter
Loose Women’s Janet StreetPorter made a shock confession recently – that she was diagnosed with skin cancer – a potentially deadly disease. Hers is, she explained, a basal cell carcinoma – which are mainly caused by repeated, unprotected exposure to the sun – though she said she’s always been careful, and worn SPF 50.
The feisty 73-year-old admitted that she initially thought the small, red lump on her nose, which she spotted after Christmas, was a mosquito bite as she had just returned from a trip to Australia. When it didn’t fade, she consulted a doctor, and was eventually given the heart-stopping news by a hospital consultant.
‘I showed this tiny spot on my nose to a dermatologist and he immediately referred me to a consultant, and they told me that I’ve got a basal cell carcinoma, which is a form of skin cancer,’ she recalled. ‘If untreated, it could grow. It has to be removed, otherwise it’s going to get bigger and bigger. Also, I could be left with a very big scar. Lockdown happened three days before I was supposed to have it removed.’
Unfortunately, the operation was delayed for months, because of Coronavirus. ‘I’ve spent the whole of lockdown getting more and more anxious about it,’ she confessed. ‘Although it doesn’t look any bigger on top of my skin, this kind of cancer grows under the skin. You can’t see it, and that’s what they’ve got to cut out.’ Thankfully, Janet’s rescheduled operation went well and – following her procedure – she appeared on Loose Women via video link, with a small scar visible on her nose. She urged viewers to get any unusual blemishes or moles checked out straight away. ‘I just want to tell everybody it’s nothing to be scared about – just get it done,’ she said. Let her story be a warning to us all, this summer…