Latest news with #ColinBloomfield
BBC News
4 days ago
- General
- BBC News
'I wasn't worried about skin cancer, so my check shocked me'
A radio producer has said he never suspected he could be at risk from skin cancer until he had a check as part of a campaign launched by a former Barwell, 27, was working at a BBC Radio Derby Sun Safe event as part of a campaign in memory of presenter Colin Bloomfield, who lost his life to melanoma in a quiet moment at the event, Mitchell decided to get checked himself - and was told to make an urgent appointment with a GP about a mole on his GP then sent Mitchell to see a dermatologist and he is now on a waiting list for urgent two to three week surgery to remove the mole. Mitchell said: "Even if it is nothing, in the future it could have been something and I'd would have never known. It could have been there for years developing, and get to a point where it has a worse outcome.""When you're younger, there's a naivety to think anything's ever going to be wrong with you. "So when they said maybe there is something, it did throw me off a bit. I was properly shocked at first."I thought 'I don't even take my shirt off really, how can I have something that's mostly caused by sun damage on my back?'"I think when you let it sink in a bit, it doesn't matter what age you are really. These things can affect anyone."Before Colin Bloomfield's death on 25 April 2015, the 33-year-old spearheaded an initial project, with help from the Nottinghamshire-based charity Skcin, to try to prevent similar resulted in 479 people having their skin checked by experts, more than 100 of whom were sent for further tests. Mitchell says he had no concerns about the mole on his back before he had it checked."I was never concerned at all. I don't go out in the sun, really. I'll go abroad occasionally and go in the pool, but if I do go in the sun, I'll have sun cream on," Mitchell added. "I have quite a lot of moles on my back, but they've been checked before and I was told they were fine."I'm grateful that I went for the check. I would never have known. "I never got to know Colin. The stories you hear about him make him sound like such an amazing person. "Without him, who knows if this campaign would've been running. The work he did to make sure others don't suffer the way he did is just brilliant."The number of people being diagnosed with melanoma skin cancer in the UK is increasing, according to Cancer Research are also non-melanoma skin cancers, which are generally more common and usually less serious than Research UK says common symptoms of skin cancer include a sore or area of skin that:Does not heal within four weeksLooks unusualHurts, is itchy, bleeds, or scabs over
BBC News
29-04-2025
- Health
- BBC News
BBC presenter's melanoma campaign "saved our lives"
A couple has credited a BBC presenter's campaign to raise awareness of skin cancer risks with saving their his death from melanoma skin cancer in 2015, BBC Radio Derby's Colin Bloomfield, 33, set up the Colin Bloomfield Sun Safe Campaign, with help from the Nottinghamshire-based charity Skcin, to try to prevent similar deciding to get their skin checked out by doctors because of Mr Bloomfield's campaign, John and Linda Williams, from Mackworth in Derbyshire, were told they had moles that were both getting the all clear from doctors, Mrs Williams said: "Finding it early is vital and had we left it any longer, things would be a lot, lot worse." 'We were very lucky' Mr Williams said he found a mark, about a millimetre in size, on his left knee that he had never been worried about until the Sun Safe Campaign appeal was launched in campaign directly inspired 479 people to get their skin checked out by experts, more than 100 of whom were urged to go for further November 2015, Mr Williams said he noticed the mark was "noticeably darker" when he returned home from a holiday in the having a check-up with a dermatologist in February 2016, they took the mole out and tests revealed it was April 2016, they then took a larger amount of skin and tests showed he was then cancer to BBC Radio Derby in 2016, Mr Williams said: "All the work and publicity that Colin Bloomfield did, detected my melanoma at an early stage."I think Colin Bloomfield has made a tremendous impact in what he has done for me." After her husband received the all clear, Mrs Williams decided she wanted to get a mark on her face checked out by doctors in July 2016."I had an original biopsy that found nothing on my mark", said Mrs Williams."When they looked at it again after it was removed, they found melanoma in the middle of it. We were both very lucky to catch the cancer at an early stage."Mrs Williams said the campaign has been "very important" to her and her husband and she has now urged people to get their moles checked out."If we see anyone with a mark or a mole, we always tell them to get it checked out and we want to help them with that first step," she added."Colin's legacy has reached a lot of people and it has saved both of our lives."It's better to be safe than sorry, so buying sun cream and putting it on could save your life."During a recent trip to Trinidad and Tobago, the couple said they ensured they wore factor 50 sun cream "in the morning, afternoon and reapplied again after swimming."
BBC News
25-04-2025
- Health
- BBC News
Skin cancer campaign returns in memory of Colin Bloomfield
A campaign to raise awareness about the risks of skin cancer is returning in memory of a BBC Radio Derby presenter who died 10 years his death from melanoma skin cancer on 25 April 2015, Colin Bloomfield, 33, spearheaded the initial project, with help from the Nottinghamshire-based charity Skcin, to try to prevent similar directly inspired 479 people to get their skin checked out by experts, more than 100 of whom were urged to go for further as part of the Colin Bloomfield Sun Safe Campaign, a number of skin checking sessions with dermatologists are being arranged by BBC Radio Derby, while Skcin is urging schools to register for its Sun Safe programme. The number of people being diagnosed with melanoma skin cancer in the UK is increasing, according to Cancer Research are also non-melanoma skin cancers, which are generally more common and usually less serious than Research UK says common symptoms of skin cancer include a sore or area of skin that:does not heal within four weeks;looks unusual;hurts, is itchy, bleeds, or scabs over. Marie Tudor, chief executive officer of Skcin, said: "There are 250,000 cases of skin cancer a year and 17,000 of melanoma - which is the most deadly form that took Colin's life."So it is a problem, it's not going to go away and we know one significant sunburn in adolescence doubles a person's chance of getting melanoma."BBC Radio Derby and Skcin raised more than £150,000 in 2015 through the Colin Bloomfield Melanoma Appeal and helped 100 schools to register as Sun Safe with teaching materials and suncream dispensers for Halsey, co-head teacher of Netherseal St Peter's Primary in Swadlincote, said: "We do revisit it annually and do a sun safe day which we usually do later in the year, but to mark Colin's anniversary we've done it this week." Mr Bloomfield was well loved by the fans of Derby County as he commentated on the 18 April, his mum Alison was a special guest at Pride Park, before the home Championship fixture versus Luton Town, to see a tribute paid to him ahead of the anniversary of his said: "[Colin] once said to me - 'Mum, I want to be remembered, not for that guy who died of melanoma, but because I was a presenter - and a good one at that'."Lots of people know more about melanoma now than ever before and we have to thank Radio Derby and Skcin for that, for putting the word around about how dreadful a disease melanoma is."
