I refused to wear hats so I could show off my long hair -my silly decision gave me cancer
Donna Mckellar said she would regularly slap sunscreen on her arms, legs and body when it was sunny but admitted she neglected her head so that people could admire her luxurious locks.
2
The 54-year-old visited her GP after her hairdresser spent a year urging her to get the 50p-sized scab on her head looked at.
The bar manager believed the itchy mark, which she'd had for four years, was innocuous and caused by catching a childhood scar with her hairbrush.
But a biopsy revealed she had basal cell carcinoma in July 2023 and she had surgery to remove it in December 2023.
Now cancer free, the mum-of-two is now urging people to protect their scalps in the sun by wearing a headscarf, hat or applying suncream.
Donna, from Glasgow, said: "Whenever we were on holiday I was always putting suncream on my legs and on my body.
"But you don't really think of your scalp which is the thing that's getting directly hit by the sun first.
"Not wearing a hat was probably a bit of a vanity.
"I thought 'I'm not wearing a hat, I've got nice long hair'. I wanted to show it off and not wear a hat. It's a bit silly.
"I just don't think I actually gave my scalp any thought.
"I was devastated when I heard the word 'cancer' because I lost my parents and my sister in the space of five years to three different cancers."
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Donna says she regrets not donning a hair covering and protecting her scalp when out in the sun.
She added: "Since the diagnosis when I've been abroad I've always got a hat on or a headband.
"I've got to wear a headband to cover the wound when I'm on holiday because it's more susceptible to the sun now.
"My hairdresser did help to save my life by encouraging me to go and get checked.
"I had a scab on my head. I had an old scar from when I was a child, I just thought that I'd caught it with my brush and it had scabbed over.
"My fingers were always at it and I used to keep picking at it and it used to bleed quite a lot.
WHAT IS BASAL CELL CARCINOMA?
Basal cell carcinoma (BCC) is the most common type of skin cancer.
It develops in the top layer of the skin (epidermis).
Basal cell carcinomas can occur anywhere on the body but are most common in areas that are exposed to the sun such as the face, head, neck, and ears.
They are often first noticed as a scab that bleeds and does not heal completely or a new lump on the skin.
"I had that for a number of years and it was my hairdresser who kept saying 'Donna will you please go and get that checked out, I don't like it at all'.
"Eventually I went to my GP who referred me to dermatology, they diagnosed it as basal cell carcinoma."
Donna's first surgery was to remove the cancer from the scalp - taking a piece of skin from her clavicle for a skin graft onto that.
The two surgeries afterwards cut the skin graft back, so that she's not left with such a big bald patch on her head.
Donna is now encouraging other people to wear head coverings or buy a specific suncream to use on their scalps.
She said: "Get a hat on or get some suncream - you can get specific ones for your scalp.
"Make sure you're covered up. People think they look ridiculous with a hat on, but I'd rather look ridiculous.
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