How Holli’s Melanoma journey started at the young age of 12.

Hi, I’m Holli and I’m a 30 year old mother of three. My Melanoma Journey really started when I was 12 years old, this was when my brother, 14 and the youngest in Australia at the time, had a large Melanoma removed from his back. This started my journey because as a family we had become aware of the huge dangers of skin cancer and knew we all had to be vigilant in the sun and in checking our skin.

I had a mole on my arm checked by three doctors who had said it was nothing, this just didn’t sit right with me, and when I mentioned it to the forth doctor while waiting for a prescription to be written out, I was pleased that he wanted it removed just in case.

It was a week before Christmas 2015 that I got the call to go back into the surgery, sure enough the mole I’d had removed had tested positive for Melanoma. Two days before Christmas I went in to have the large tumor removed, and some skin grafted from my leg to try and cover what is now a large whole in my arm.

I’m currently having PET and CT scans regularly as well as Doctor checkups and keeping a close eye on my body, which to me is the biggest preventative action, to know your own body, and have anything you’re worried about checked.