Spreading Skin Cancer Awareness
- Twitch streaming star Tyler “Ninja” Blevins, 32, wants to make a difference in cancer awareness, recently announcing to his over 50 million followers that he is now cancer free from melanoma, and urging his younger-generation fans to get in for those skin checks and take better care of their health.
- Melanoma is a type of skin cancer that starts in the same cells that give your skin, hair and eyes their color. Ninety percent of melanomas are caused by ultraviolet radiation from the sun, so it’s important to protect your skin with things like sunscreen and clothing.
- Paying attention to moles or growths on your skin is an easy way to look out for melanoma since changes to a mole you’ve had for a while or developing a new growth you don’t remembering having on your skin could be signs of of this cancer, according to SurvivorNet’s experts.
- Doing regular self-checks on your skin is important to find skin cancer early. If you’re high-risk, it’s especially vital.
Gone are the days of cancer being more associated with older people, as there have been an increasing amount of cancer cases in younger folks in recent years. This means people of all ages must be more diligent about their health checkups. “Young” in the cancer world is ultimately anyone under 40.
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“Just got the news from my dermatologist, Great news x 2!” Ninja began a post on X (formerly Twitter). “Excision was successful with clear margins. Lesion biopsied nearby showed only mild atypia and was entirely removed with the biopsy.”
Mild atypia means slight atypical cells, low-grade abnormal changes, but does not mean cancer.
“As of right now, I am officially cancer free,” the Fortnite gaming streamer added, thanking his fans “for the prayers and kind words this last week.”
On March 26, Ninja said had gone in for an “annual skin/mole check” that his wife of seven years Jessica Blevins, 31, “proactively scheduled” for him.
“There was a mole on the bottom of my foot that they wanted to remove just to be careful. It came back as melanoma, but they are optimistic that we caught it in the early stages.”
Continued Ninja, “I had another dark spot appear near it, so today they biopsied that and removed a larger area around the melanoma with the hopes that under the microscope they will see clear non-melanoma edges and we will know we got it.”
“I’m grateful to have hope in finding this early, but please take this as a PSA to get skin checkups.”
Then on April 10, Ninja updated fans that he got another mole removed in his right quad, needed two more moles removed on his toes and would have to have “another large incision on my back early may, doctors just want to be careful to stay on top of it.”
The multi-millionaire, who has been featured on Forbes for his impressive gaming records and money-making ability, acquired a chunk of his followers by streaming Fortnite and Volorant for six hours a day on average at his peak in 2018, raking in over $18 million in revenue.
Putting his semi-newfound fame to good use, the influencer and his wife said in a statement to PEOPLE that they want to “shine a light on the importance of routine skin checkups.”
For now, Ninja added that he would be getting checked “every three months” for the rest of the year.
Learning About Melanoma
Melanoma is a type of skin cancer that starts in the same cells that give your skin, hair and eyes their color. The American Cancer Society estimates that 2024 will bring around 100,640 new cases, roughly split between 59,170 in men and 41,470 in women.
Tragically, around 8,290 people are expected to die from the disease.
The ACS states that the risk gets higher as people age, with 65 being the average diagnosis, but melanoma is not uncommon in younger people, and is actually one of the most common cancers in young adults.
The disease can develop from an existing mole or appear as a dark or pink growth on the skin even in places on the body that never see the sun. It’s also known to be the deadliest form of skin cancer.
“Melanomas are the deadliest type of skin cancer because they have a tendency to spread to other parts of the body,” explains Dr. Anna Pavlick, a medical oncologist with Weill Cornell Medicine who specializes in treating skin cancer.
Remember ‘A-B-C-D-E’ for Skin Checks
Ninety percent of melanomas are caused by ultraviolet radiation from the sun. This means excessive time in the sun even as a child puts you at a higher risk.
Doing regular self-checks on your skin is important to find skin cancer early. If you’re high-risk, it’s especially vital.
Examining Your Skin for Melanoma: Remember ABCDE
Dr. Cecilia Larocca, of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, gives SurvivorNet an overview of things to look out for with moles using the ABCDE self-screening method:
- Asymmetrical moles: “If you drew a line straight down the center of the mole, would the sides match?”
- Borders that are “irregular, jagged, not smooth.” It can also stand for bleeding.
- Colors: “Multiple distinct colors in the mole.”
- Diameter: “Larger than 6mm, about the size of a pencil head eraser.”
- Evolution: “This may be the most important,” she says. “Anything that is changing over time such as gaining color, losing color, painful, itching, hurting, changing shape, etc.”
Spots on our skin are often harmless, but it’s still important to keep an eye on them and reach out to your doctor if you see any changes or find a growth anywhere on your skin that looks suspicious.
If you notice any of these changes, see your dermatologist for a full skin assessment. Early detection of melanoma improves your chances for successful treatment.
Top 5 Ways to Avoid Skin Cancer
In a previous interview with SurvivorNet, Dr. Dendy Engelman, from MDCS Dermatology in New York, shared the top five things you can do to avoid skin cancer:
- Avoid sun during peak hours, which is 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
- Wear a wide brimmed hat and sunglasses to protect the top of your head, ears, and the delicate area around the eye.
- Wear at least SPF 30 sunscreen and make sure to reapply every two hours or after excessive sweating or swimming.
- Have yearly skin checks (with a professional), because it’s difficult to evaluate areas all over the body.
- Avoid tanning beds. There are no “good” tanning beds, and they can significantly increase your risk of melanoma.
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