red head here. It just so happens that I go to the doctor today to have stitches out from where they cut out some nasties (on the inside of my arm). So take john L's advice: if you have fare skin, are a red head, have freckles etc, please don't sun bathe. It's stupid

Black people get skin cancer from exposure to the sun. Anyone with skin, including dogs, can get melanoma.

Yes, my dad is that type - light skin, freckles, and was diagnosed with melanoma 6 years ago. A mole on his back start growing and bleeding - after surgery and immunotherapy for 6 months, he is fine now. But you never know whether that f***ing cancer won't come back. So stay safe, and go to dermatologist immediately if notice some change in moles or freckles.

I have the same complexion as this woman, light skin, freckles but I never was a sun lover, stayed out of it my entire life after a very bad sunburn at 8. I still worry about cancer, hard to see when freckled.

Exactly! Although funny enough, not all redheads have pale skin or freckles. My father has very pale skin and freckles and he's not a redhead, but because of his light complexion he needs to take extra care of his skin. Anyone with pale skin needs to take extra care of their skin. So damn important!

Yep, sun = bad in high quantities. You do have to mind your vitamin D as well. About 15 mins a day should be enough for that though. It's amazing if you go on vacation to one of the canaries how many older (originally fair skinned) people are there lying in the sun looking like baked leather - or worse, sitting in the sun with skin that's already burnt! I don't understand why people are so reckless with their bodies!

Freckles are not mutated skin cells. Instead of getting an even tan, some people get small spots of Melanin instead. "Melanin helps to protect the skin from the Sun's harmful ultraviolet rays by reflecting or absorbing them. Freckles are triggered by exposure to sunlight. The Sun's ultraviolet radiation causes melanocytes to make more melanin, which can cause freckles to appear or become darker."

Yep. I stay out of the sun due to being pale, red-headed and freckled, and wear tons of sun screen when I go out. I just had a basal cell carcinoma removed from the side of my nose and had a hole the size of a dime cut out.

I'm a redhead too, fair skin, blue eyes. I had a melanoma removed about 4 years ago. Apparently we with red hair and my colouring have a gene which causes changes to occur and allow us melanoma. Lucky us, huh?

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Downvote all you want but you really are an ignorant s.o.b have you ever tried reading an actual researched published book since google????? Freckles are caused by an increase of melanin with n the skin cells as a natural defence mechanism not a mutation,( really a mutation) ????? freckles or not you either are unlucky to get skin cancer or you don't!

Don't just avoid tanning. Wear a brimmed hat everywhere you go. I wore sunscreen all the time growing up (I had a prescription for it as a child before higher spf was considered safe for an over-the-counter product) but I still have basil cell carcinoma on my face. I now have scars on my nose and forehead from having it removed. Protect yourself!

Such a scary deal. My vitamin D is low and has even gotten lower in the last year with an under the tongue spray. I religiously wear hugh number sunscreen and keep covered. I'm certainly not going to go to a tanning bed but I will try 20 minutes of sun.

@Danielle - You can get cancer from drinking too much milk, too. Or water.

I don't think so, I think that it makes it that all the more relatable to the reader. It makes them more personable instead of a character

It helps to add to the importance of the message by showing that it does not just affect the person's life ,but the lives of their loved ones. That,by protecting oneself, they are also protecting others that love and/or rely on them.

She first discovered the spot and had it looked at WHILE pregnant with her youngest. Being a mom is part of who she is. Doing what it takes to beat her cancer, heal, and be there for her family is important to her. Her cancer battle is not just about her, it's about her loved ones as well.

It is context and detail. Without it all stories may aswell be 2 lines long... This is an odd thing to be upset about

The children could have lost their mother, it's contextual

They only recently found out that it is very addictive. That's why in The Netherlands they're trying to close/regulate all tanning salons.

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"Get by?" No amount of tanning is safe. Are you saying that fair people aren't getting by?

That is driving me crazy too, I keep on thinking maybe because its a mirror image, but it doesn't jibe.