Deadly detail spotted on woman's leg during massage
A masseuse has been praised for saving a woman's life after she noticed a deadly detail on her leg.
Seonag MacKinnon, from Edinburgh in Scotland, was given an aromatherapy massage as a gift from her daughter in 2019.
She told TODAY as she was enjoying the treatment, masseuse Dominika Lachowicz noticed a patch of skin on the back of her left thigh that looked unusual.
"She asked if I was aware of it. [She] said she was not a medic but that she saw a lot of marks and perhaps this one didn't look quite right," Ms MacKinnon said.
"She advised me to consider getting it looked at by my doctor."
Ms MacKinnon told TODAY the pair were strangers and she was surprised by what the masseuse had told her.
She added that she was not concerned at first as it didn't look alarming.
"There was nothing that screamed, 'This is a silent killer'," she said.
Erring on the side of caution, the mother made an appointment with her doctor who recommended she see a dermatologist. She was later diagnosed with melanoma.
"Melanoma is apparently the deadliest of skin cancers and it spreads very quickly," she told TODAY.
“He said, ‘We could have been having a very different conversation just now. The therapist has saved your life. I hope you are thinking of buying her flowers',” Ms MacKinnon said.
The mother has since had the melanoma removed and is now warning others to be alert and check their skin for moles and unusual marks.
“I hope it may encourage more to keep an eye on moles and marks,” she told TODAY.
“I obviously take no chances and wear high protection suncream in the summer and face cream with sun protection all year round.
"I believe some people take photos of their bodies every few months to monitor marks. That sounds like a good idea for all of us.”
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