KERRY RAFFERTY had gone to hospital for a routine check-up, but it turned into a visit that would change her life as doctors told her that a mole on her back was cancer.

Now former counselling student Kerry is working with fellow Sunderland graduate Elaine Taylor to make sure as many lives as possible are saved in the future.

“The nurse spotted the mark on my back and immediately called a consultant in” says 39-year-old Kerry from Washington, “I just remember thinking to myself, ‘well even if it’s skin cancer, I’ll be fine’, little did I really know.”

Six weeks later, after her biopsy, Kerry was ushered into a room at Sunderland Royal Hospital and told she had malignant melanoma.

“My mind was all over the place,” recalls Kerry, “I remember hearing them talking to me but I wasn’t taking a lot of it in.”

Like millions of other people, Kerry didn’t really know what melanoma was, or that advanced forms of the condition were often untreatable – and fatal.

Two weeks after her diagnosis was confirmed, the mum-of-three had to undergo a wide local excision to remove the cancerous tissue.

During the procedure a section of skin was removed, almost down to the bone.

But more bad news was to follow.

“They noticed my lymph nodes had swollen,” says Kerry. “There was a possibility the cancer had spread there too. It was at that point that I really knew the next set of results would be between life and death.”

As Kerry would learn, malignant melanoma often travels to the liver, lungs and brain and, at such an advanced stage, treatment becomes very difficult.

Fortunately, the cancer had not spread but the after-effects of the trauma would stay with Kerry and her family.

“They said they wanted to check my son Liam too to make sure he was okay,” she recalls, “It was at that point that I really started to struggle.”

Confused and upset, Kerry left her counselling job and struggled to cope with all she had been through.

She was particularly angry about the lack of information available on melanoma and its consequences.

“I just kept thinking ‘where’s the support’,” she says, “I was lost and I didn’t want others to have to feel the same way.”

That was when Kerry teamed up with friend and fellow University of Sunderland graduate Elaine, 49. Elaine had supported Kerry through her recovery and the pair wanted to use the skills they had gained at the University of Sunderland to help counsel others who had in some way been touched by melanoma.

“Our time at the university had really prepared us well for what we wanted to do,” Kerry says. “At first the plan was to support and help people, but then we realised there was so much more that was needed.”

The pair formed the group MelanomaMe, for which they are currently applying for charity status. The aim is to offer counselling and information, support and advice, to those affected by, or suffering from, melanoma.

Working with the beauty industry, schools and workplaces, the team wants to spread the word and make people really understand what melanoma is.

“Melanoma is known as ‘The Beast’ because of what it can do,” says Kerry.

“We need to protect ourselves, whether it’s applying sunscreen to our children or educating the beauty industry on what to look out for.

"I had no symptoms, but I did have cancer. If it hadn’t been for that nurse who spotted it while looking at something else, I don’t know if I’d be here today.”

ITV Tyne Tees news presenter Pam Royle has praised the pair for their efforts to raise awareness. Pam, a University of Sunderland honorary graduate, revealed last year the dangers of ignoring warning signs after she was diagnosed with the condition and underwent emergency surgery for invasive skin cancer.

“I’m very pleased to hear about the work that Kerry and Elaine are doing to raise people's awareness of melanoma and how deadly it can be,” she says, “It can spread throughout your body in your bloodstream causing cancer elsewhere. When I told someone I had been diagnosed with skin cancer, a malignant melanoma, I was shocked when they said, "Oh well it's the least worst cancer to get'.”

“They clearly didn't know how insidiously deadly melanoma can be, spreading throughout your body in your bloodstream. There isn't enough publicity about melanoma and its effects. Melanoma can be difficult to diagnose, and it is essential that it gets spotted and treated early. Anything which raises the profile of melanoma, its symptoms and its outcomes can only be a good thing."

MELANOMA FACTS

  • Melanoma is the deadliest form of skin cancer.
  • Melanoma is not just skin cancer. It can develop anywhere on the body - eyes, scalp, nails, feet, mouth, etc.
  • Melanoma does not discriminate by age, race or gender.
  • Nearly 90 per cent of melanomas are thought to be caused by exposure to UV light and sunlight.
  • It takes only one blistering sunburn, especially at a young age, to more than double a person's chance of developing melanoma later in life.
  • You can help prevent melanoma by seeking shade whenever possible, wearing protective clothing, avoiding direct sunlight between 10am-4pm and using broad spectrum sunscreen with SPF of at least 30 every day
  • To learn more about MelanomaMe, visit melanoma-me.org.uk/