A mother of three, diagnosed with stage four cancer, has shared insights into how her youthful habits have influenced her health later in life.
Claire Turner initially believed she had simply strained a muscle in her right shoulder when she first felt pain and noticed swelling. However, after visiting the doctor three months later, she discovered the reality was far more serious.
The situation began in October 2023 during a family weekend getaway. Claire, while passing a pastry to her daughter in the car, realized something was amiss.
“It was pretty painful carrying a bag and that night it was quite painful to lean back on it,” she recalled.
Despite being in pain, the Oxfordshire, UK native went on with the trip but decided to visit the hospital afterward. Doctors initially thought it was a torn ligament. However, weeks later, the condition had not improved, and Claire noticed swelling in her shoulder.
After consulting with her doctor, she learned that shoulder injuries can ‘take a while to heal.’ Nonetheless, she was referred to an orthopedic consultant and underwent an MRI.
Claire endured a challenging wait over Christmas 2023, delving into ‘Google rabbit holes’ to comprehend her symptoms. On January 26, she received her diagnosis: stage four cutaneous malignant melanoma.
“I came away knowing it was stage four. The doctor said I had a 50/50 chance of coming out of the other side of this,” she said.
“The nurse said ‘it could be that there was something on the skin and your body healed it but the cancer cells got so deep that they stayed in your body and traveled round for months or even years and created tumors’.”
By June, Claire discovered that the cancer had metastasized to five sections of her liver, both thighs, her glute, lymph nodes, around her shoulder, and on either side of her clavicle.
She underwent three rounds of immunotherapy, which successfully reduced the size of the tumors. By August, a scan showed significant improvement as many tumors had disappeared.
“My nurse said to me that 10 years ago with my diagnosis I would be given six to seven months to live. That was quite shocking,” she remarked. “Immunotherapy has massively changed that, I’ve just passed a year of the initial shoulder injury.”
Reflecting on her life and diagnosis, Claire emphasizes the importance of being aware of one’s skin and overall health.
“It’s not just waiting for something to pop up on your skin,” she explained. “It’s about knowing the damage the UV rays do to your skin.”
In her twenties, Claire admitted to using sunbeds to achieve a tan.
“I still sit in the sun but I’ll sit in the shade. I’ll wear a hat or I won’t have bare shoulders, it’s just about knowing,” she continued. “It’s about not going on the sun beds and not getting burned. Sun damage has caused my cancer, it could have been avoided.
“I did use sunbeds and I’ve been burned in the sun striving for a tan, a tan doesn’t last. Fake tan doesn’t last and real tan doesn’t last but which one’s safer? I’ve got lots of moles on the skin and they’ve been checked. It’s about protection and taking care of your skin before anything appears.”
Currently, Claire feels optimistic about her progress and is thankful for the support she’s received.
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence, contact the American Cancer Society on 1-800-227-2345 or via their live chat feature, available 24/7 every day of the year.