A woman was told by two doctors that her mole was nothing to worry about, but she trusted her instinct and sought further assessment15:31, 02 Jun 2026In 2021, Reach editor Tyler Mears took the leap and fulfilled her dream of relocating to the coast. Tyler and her family packed up their entire lives and moved to Pembrokeshire. It was absolutely wonderful. Their evenings were spent swimming in the sea, enjoying barbecues on the beach, and heading out on lengthy walks. After several difficult years battling health problems (Tyler was diagnosed with lupus and kidney failure in 2017), it was the relaxed, peaceful, and joyful life they had always longed for.‌However, just a few months after making the big move, everything was turned on its head once more. A mole on Tyler's leg had been troubling her for years, yet she had already visited two doctors about it. Both had reassured Tyler there was nothing to worry about, telling her it was a benign tumour called a fibroma, possibly triggered by an insect bite. So she kept pushing it to the back of her mind. The doctors know best, right?‌Yet, for some reason, Tyler simply couldn't shake the nagging feeling that something wasn't right. The mole continued to grow, began changing colour, and, unpleasant as it sounds, was becoming crusty and itchy. Tyler considered returning to her GP but was worried that she would be wasting their time.‌A few weeks later, while working from home on a gloriously sunny day, Tyler was wearing a summer dress. As she leaned back in her chair and glanced down at her leg, the angry-looking mole stared straight back at her. Tyler made up her mind on the spot to call her GP. That summer dress may well have ended up saving her life. The moment Tyler showed the GP, her anxious expression confirmed she had made the right call. She referred Tyler to a specialist who appeared equally concerned and wanted to schedule the mole's removal straight away.Despite Tyler's worry, she still refused to let her mind drift to that dark place suggesting it could be cancer. Tyler kept reassuring herself: 'It's an insect bite but we're just making sure'. So when the specialist asked her to come in the following week for surgery, Tyler naively asked whether it could be postponed. It was Tyler's best friend's 30th birthday and she'd been planning a big party for months, reports Wales Online.‌The specialist looked Tyler straight in the eye and told her that she needed to have it done as soon as possible. At that moment, Tyler knew in her heart it wasn't just an insect bite.The following months passed in a blur. Tyler underwent surgery under local anaesthetic, the mole was placed in a test tube and dispatched for a biopsy, with a follow-up appointment booked to receive results within a month or so.A few weeks later, Tyler received a call asking her to come in earlier than planned. The woman on the phone told Tyler to bring someone with her. Tyler's stomach sank and she knew precisely what they were going to tell her.‌Tyler felt like a frightened little girl. What are they going to say? Who does she take with her? How was Tyler going to tell people if it is cancer?Tyler chose to take her mum. Mostly because the thought of having to break the news to her was absolutely devastating. They walked into the appointment together. Tyler knew straight away by the look on the doctor's face what he was going to say. Tyler's heart sank knowing what her mother was about to hear. She had already been through so much heartache and anxiety with Tyler's lupus diagnosis. Tyler's parents and fiancé had been incredibly strong throughout everything, but how would they all cope with this?The pair sat down and the doctor began with: "There's no easy way to say this." No s*** doc. There's no easy way to hear it either so please just get it over with. He went on to explain how Tyler had a malignant melanoma. It was stage 2B. It sounds bad. He told them not to Google it.‌Tyler noticed that he hadn't used the word cancer. It was all medical terminology. But she simply wanted it straight. Tyler asked him: "So, it's cancer then?" And he replied: "Yes."At that moment Tyler just went into survival mode. She couldn't even cry. Tyler avoided looking at her mum because she knew that would send her into a spiral. It was such a strange experience. So Tyler sat upright in her seat and matter-of-factly said: "Okay, it's cancer. What do we do now?"The pair walked out of the hospital clutching a pile of Macmillan leaflets bearing pictures of cancer patients on the front. Tyler's dad was waiting in the car. In the same matter-of-fact tone, she told him it was cancer. Unlike the doctor, Tyler chose to use the word. She didn't want to be afraid of it. So Tyler just said it. She then had to break the news to her fiancé and friends, while Tyler's parents faced the dreadful task of informing the rest of the family. Tyler doesn't know how she would have coped without all the amazing people around her.‌A few weeks later came more surgery. Because Tyler's melanoma was so deep, further skin had to be removed from around it. A lymph node biopsy would then determine her fate. If the cancer had spread to Tyler's lymph nodes, well, from what she could gather – it wouldn't be good news.Tyler went to the radiotherapy department at Singleton Hospital and spent an hour beneath a vast nuclear scanner. They injected dye into Tyler's body and marked the lymph node they intended to remove from her groin. Tyler remembers staring upwards, counting the ceiling tiles. She lost count several times and started again – but it helped pass the time.‌Tyler then travelled to a different hospital in Port Talbot for major surgery on her leg and groin. Sitting in the waiting room beforehand felt utterly surreal. This Morning was playing on the TV and people sat around flicking through magazines as though it were the most ordinary thing in the world. Tyler thinks that actually helped her. She kept telling herself: 'Look how normal all this is.'Tyler had the surgery. And then it was a waiting game. That was the most difficult part of the entire dreadful ordeal. Continuing with everyday life – waking up, preparing breakfast, completing household tasks – as though she wasn't waiting to discover, to put it bluntly, if she was going to die. Tyler attempted to appear normal and resilient but it overwhelmed her in waves. Every time she heard a melancholy song she wondered if it could be played at her funeral. One evening a cancer storyline appeared on TV and Tyler started crying and she just couldn't stop.Several weeks later Tyler was summoned back. The dread in her stomach was overwhelming. It felt like, if she allowed it, it was going to consume her. Tyler kept suppressing those dark feelings and maintained her 'matter-of-fact' persona.‌Tyler's mum wasn't permitted in this time. So, she went in alone. The doctor who performed the surgery – who was genuinely lovely – explained that the operation was a success. She looked at Tyler with a kind face and told her the cancer hadn't spread. The overwhelming dread in her stomach transformed into overwhelming relief. Tyler felt like she could breathe for the first time in weeks.Although it was positive news the emotional trauma of experiencing a cancer scare doesn't disappear. She still has days where she feels overwhelming panic and anxiety.Article continues belowTyler has to attend monitoring appointments every three months for five years where they examine all her moles. It's funny – Tyler never truly noticed how many she had before. At the risk of sounding rude – Tyler's bum is absolutely covered in them! There remains, of course, a possibility that the cancer could return. Roughly one in 10 people who receive a negative lymph node biopsy result still pass away within 10 years. Yet, thanks to the remarkable NHS and that inexpensive summer dress purchased from Primark, Tyler was not among the 3,200 people who lost their lives this year due to skin cancer, and for that she is eternally grateful and considers herself truly fortunate.So please, Tyler urges you, if you discover a mole and have any worries – don't delay. Trust your gut. Be one of the lucky ones like her.