Five years ago Karen Sexton’s father spotted an unusual mole on her back.

He encouraged her to get it removed, never thinking that it might be cancerous.

“He just thought it looked funny,” the 33-year-old said. “I also thought it was just an ordinary mole because I had it for years and years. Then when the doctor removed it and had it tested I found out it was melanoma.

“It was a shock. You don’t expect at that young an age you’re going to hear the word ‘cancer’.”

She was spared from chemotherapy and radiation, but needed three surgeries.

After months out of work and on bed rest she was finally given the all-clear. And then last year she got some more scary news.

“I had a mole that I didn’t like again,” she said.

“They took a sample and the test came back that it was melanistic, which is a precursor that develops into melanoma.

“Now my big fear is what if I don’t catch it or see it in time?”

Mrs Sexton spoke with The Royal Gazette in an effort to bring more awareness to Bermuda Cancer and Health Centre’s SunSmart programme.

The scheme teaches young people how to protect their skin from the sun’s rays; studies show a majority of skin damage occurs before a person’s eighteenth birthday.

Mrs Sexton grew up in Sao Paulo, Brazil where “it was sunny all year round”.

“It was part of our culture in Brazil to go to the pool and I would go there every weekend to sunbathe and during holidays we would go to the beach,” she said.

Her mother covered her with sunscreen as a child, but once she reached her teens she wasn’t as vigilant.

“I was a lot less careful about it and wanted to have a tan, so I did some very silly things,” she said.

Mrs Sexton now wears a sunscreen with SPF 50, which she applies every three hours. She also wears sunshirts and hats for added protection.

Despite her own scares, she doesn’t believe people should live in fear of getting skin cancer.

“There’s some degree of chance that you might have the genes for it but you [can limit the impact] by applying sunscreen, wearing a hat and finding shade. It’s important you do that,” she said.

“Just by doing those things you might be giving yourself more years. I’m so grateful I caught it when I did in 2008.”

Her diagnosis has taught her to appreciate life more, she said.

“There is so much in life — like getting married and becoming a mother — that I would’ve missed out on. I don’t worry about the small things any more. I’m so much more aware of what’s important to me. That’s one of the reasons why I support Bermuda Cancer and Health Center and take part in the Relay for Life because if it weren’t for research and diagnostic technology I wouldn’t be here now.”

The Bermuda Volleyball Association will hold a tournament at Horseshoe Bay on August 29. Funds raised will go towards the SunSmart initiative.

See sidebar for tournament details.