"I Got Skin Cancer at 15"

Two years ago, at 15, Jacqueline Sims of Phoenix, Ariz., was diagnosed with her first melanoma—a potentially fatal form of skin cancer. Now a teen spokesperson for melanoma prevention, Jacky shared her story with us.

A few years ago, I was a typical teenage girl. I always swam during the summer, and I laid out in the sun a lot to build my tan. I think I used sunscreen, but I had this strange idea that if you put it on, you could still get a tan without having the negative effects. I also used tanning beds but stopped because they always weirded me out.

My mom used to take me to the doctor for mole checks every other year because we live in Phoenix, where the sun is strong. In the third grade, I actually had two moles removed from my back, and it was no big deal. So when I went in again freshman year, and they removed a couple more, I thought it would be nothing. When my mom told me they’d found a malignant melanoma on my chest, I didn’t even know what that was. Then she said, “You have cancer.”

At first, I thought melanoma was a skin cancer that could just be cut out. You’d have a scar, and that’d be it. But there are different types of skin cancer. Melanoma is a tumor. If it’s caught early, it’s easy to contain. But it’s also one of the hardest cancers to stop.There are five stages of the disease. Mine was in stage III.

When they removed the mole on my chest, for two weeks my family was on pins and needles waiting to see if the cancer had spread. Doctors can’t tell you, “It’s nothing to worry about,” because they don’t know until the moles are biopsied. I was lucky—it hadn’t spread.

That tan is not worth it!

Recently, they found another melanoma on my arm. My doctor said that finding even one on someone so young was a shock. With two, I’m at extremely high risk for more cancers. Every three months I get a skin check, and I limit my sun exposure as much as possible. I don’t even swim during the day anymore.

My friends have re-evaluated certain things too. Now, instead of laying out, we’ll go get spray-on tans together before prom or whenever. Within my close circle, no one uses tanning beds anymore. They know it’s hard for me to see them support an industry that’s basically selling something that’s been so painful to me. I know it’s a normal thing for girls to do—I did it. I just think that if teens understood that melanoma can be fatal, they’d realize that it isn’t so important to get that dark tan.

There are times I wish I could go to the pool and hang out with everyone like I used to and be a normal teenager. I’ll think, “Maybe this one time won’t affect me…” But then I’ll be putting silicone on my scars (I have so many now—on my face, on my toes—it’s hard to keep track) to help them heal, and I know it’s not worth it.

—As told to “Fresh Voices” contributor Marisa Kula

The Facts On Melanoma

Skin cancer is the most common cancer in the U.S., afflicting more than 1 million people annually. Melanoma is the deadliest form and is most often caused by intense exposures to the UV radiation from the sun or artificial light sources, like tanning beds. Of the estimated 105,750 new patients this year, only a fraction will be teenagers. But the cancer has been linked to excessive sun exposure in the first 10 to 18 years of life.

“How teens behave today sows the seeds of skin cancer that will develop years later,” says Dr. Clay Cockerell of the American Academy of Dermatology. “In children, melanoma may be due to an inherited susceptibility,” says Dr. John DiGiovanna of the National Cancer Institute. “But the message is the same: Avoid blistering burns, wear sunscreen with SPF 15 or higher, plus long sleeves and a wide-brimmed hat.”

Melanoma can develop from or near a mole. The "ABCD" signes of melanoma are: Asymmetry (the halves don't match); Border irregularity (edges are ragged); Color variability(pigment is not uniform) and Diameter larger than a pancil eraser (6 mm)
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