'I used sunbeds as a teen and now have stage 4 cancer - healthy tans are a myth'
A mum-of-three with stage four melanoma has urged others to be careful in the sun after spending her teenage years having sunbeds.
Tanya Ballan was diagnosed with the serious form of skin cancer after suffering from back pain and a swollen stomach. The 36-year-old, who lives in County Durham, also found a lump in her breast. She discovered she had stage four cancer in both breasts, the lining of the stomach, the bone and the lymph nodes, reports Chronicle Live.
Tanya, who is mum to Sonny, 16, Olivia, 12, and Eliza, four, said it was initially thought to have began as breast cancer. However further tests revealed it had developed from melanoma.
The former florist said recent results have shown that the cancer has now spread to her brain and is present in her tonsil and one side of her tongue. Tanya said: "It was devastating, I just felt like my whole world was falling apart.
"I am on treatment and it's still progressing, it's quite scary. My partner and the kids keep me going on a daily basis. If it wasn't for them, and my family, I would have folded a lot time ago. The support off them on a daily basis has been unbelievable."
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Tanya with her partner Andrew and their three children (Chronicle Live)According to the NHS, melanoma is a type of skin cancer that can spread to other areas of the body. Symptoms include the appearance of a new mole or the change in an existing mole.
Tanya said she did not notice any symptoms of melanoma before her diagnosis in July 2020. She said it wasn't until she began suffering from pain and swelling that she realised she needed to be checked out.
She was diagnosed following a CT scan and, due to covid-19 rules, she had to tell her partner Andrew Smith, 39, in the car park of the hospital. She went on to have 21 litres of fluid drained from her stomach over three weeks.
Tanya said: "I looked like I had put half a stone on over night. I found a lump in my breast and I was referred for a mammogram. I didn't go for the mammogram as I was too unwell. I couldn't get out of bed due to the swelling on the stomach. I was admitted to Darlington hospital where they took bloods and then did a CT scan. When they gave me the news I couldn't really take in what they were telling me. I just thought, at the time, I had breast cancer."
Following Tanya's diagnosis, a Go Fund Me page was set up for her by a friend. More than £6,300 has been raised to help her make memories with her children.
L-R clockwise Olivia, Eliza, Tanya, Sonny and Andrew (Chronicle Live)She said: "We try to be as honest as possible with them. We thought about Disneyland but I don't know whether I would be fit to fly. If not, I think we will go to different places in this country.
"I just want to say thank you for everything. The generosity has been unbelievable from friends, family and even total strangers. It's totally overwhelming. Thank you to everyone who has donated, supported me and been there."
Tanya said she has been given a number of different immunotherapy drugs to treat the cancer, which has also spread to her lung. She is also set to take part in a new trial drug the Freeman Hospital in Newcastle. She is now urging others to wear fake tan and look after themselves when they are in the sun.
Tanya said: "I used sunbeds as a teenager but I was always really careful as an adult. Be more aware because it can happen to anybody. People think a tan is healthy but there's no such thing as a healthy tan. I think you're better off faking rather than baking.
"I don't think there's enough awareness out there. If you go and buy a packet of cigarettes they will tell you smoking kills. I think people in sun bed shops should be made aware. I think it should be taught in schools. If it's taught to them at a young age it's going to guide them as they get older."
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