Lily Murphy, 30, from Watford, UK, was just 23 when she was diagnosed with stage 1B melanoma. She’d used sunbeds fewer than 10 times before a trip to Vietnam and Bali, hoping to “start” her tan. After noticing a dark, bleeding mole, a second doctor referred her urgently. “That’s when the doctor said, ‘This doesn’t look right.’”
Doctors removed the mole and confirmed it was melanoma. “I was shocked, I was devastated,” Lily recalled. She underwent two surgeries and was given the all-clear in 2019.
In 2023, she felt tired, had chest pain, and struggled to breathe. Doctors initially dismissed it as anxiety. Eventually, tests revealed “masses in your lung and your neck.” She was diagnosed with stage 4 melanoma, which had spread through her blood.
Lily is now on lifelong treatment. Thanks to modern therapies, some patients with stage 4 melanoma can live longer lives.
Lily launched a petition to ban sunbeds in the UK. “Just going on a sunbed for six minutes can change your whole life,” she said. “If I could stop just one person… it will be a miracle.”
