Paul Merson has admitted that 'being a man' might have caused him to delay getting a mole checked before his skin cancer diagnosis. The retired England footballer and Sky Sports pundit postponed a doctor's visit for months until he was diagnosed with melanoma in 2012.
Delayed Check Due to 'Man Thing'
Merson confessed to 'never' applying sunscreen during his professional football career. 'I was at that age where growing up there weren't a lot of sun creams around, and I'd burn. Then playing football I never would because you'd be worried it would get in your eyes,' he said on Good Morning Britain.
The 58-year-old revealed the mole was on his back, an area he rarely exposed to the sun. 'It was strange because it was on my back. Even when I used to go sunbathe, I'd never lay on my front – it was just by walking around.'
Discovered by Family on Holiday
Merson was on holiday with his family when one of his children noticed he was bleeding on his back. Despite this, he 'still went home and didn't do anything about it.' He speculated, 'I don't know if it was a man thing or I was scared or something like that.'
GMB host Susanna Reid noted that Merson had admitted his own 'laziness' contributed to the delay.
Diagnosis and Treatment
After repeated urging from his doctor, Merson finally had the mole cut out and was soon told he had a melanoma. 'I went in the next day and had it cut out and had 50 stitches,' he said.
Over the next five years, Merson underwent two annual scans and check-ups twice a year, which he described as 'scary.' 'I was always going in with that fear of wondering if it had come back and that was horrible then watching other people coming out who hadn't got that good news.'
Merson called the scare something that was 'his own fault.' In 2022, he admitted to being a former 'sun worshipper' who would 'feel better' about himself with a tan.
Emotional Aftermath
After receiving his diagnosis, he 'burst into tears,' but was told he was lucky the cancer had not spread. 'They were waiting to see if I would have to take tablets or have chemo. They said: 'Another two or three months, we wouldn't have been able to do anything.' And that was just through pure laziness, if I'm being honest.'
