Atomic Kitten’s Natasha Hamilton reveals secret skin cancer battle

The 42-year-old singer opened up about the symptoms she experienced before being diagnosed with skin cancer, and how her use of sunbeds may have contributed to the diagnosis.

Ms Hamilton was diagnosed with skin cancer last year and underwent surgery to remove a Basal-cell carcinoma from her back.

She revealed on Good Morning Britain that she released she needed to see a doctor to get a "freckle" on her back examined after getting sunburnt on holiday.

She said: "I had an itchy spot on my back, and I thought it was a mosquito bite. I didn't think much of it."

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She added: "I felt it and went, 'Oh it's a mosquito bite,' it wasn't until four weeks later when I was at home and it was itching and I went, 'Hang on a minute,' that's a bit long for a mosquito bite, and asked my husband to have a look, and he went, 'That's not a bite,' and took a picture, and when I looked at it, I went, 'I think I know what that is'."

"Originally, it was a dark freckle I'd had on my back for many years. It wasn't raised, it wasn't a mole, it was just a freckle," she explained.

Ms Hamilton highlighted the importance of avoiding excessive sun exposure and tanning beds.

Asked about her sunbed use, Ms Hamilton referenced how popular they were when she was younger, especially while she was in Atomic Kitten.

She said: "People of my age will probably feel the same or remember, if you were going on a night out, you used a sunbed because you wanted that sun kissed look to make yourself feel good, to give you a bit of confidence. 

"If I was going to do something like Top Of The Pops, or a big TV show, I'd want to look sun kissed, so we would go to the sunbeds.

"There was a sun bed shop facing the hotel that we stayed in all the time in London. 

"I used tan accelerators and I can honestly say I don't think that there was ever a time when I went on a sun bed that I didn't burn, looking back now."

Despite being cancer-free now, she remains on high alert and is checking her skin "all the time".

She said: "Since then, a few things have appeared on my skin, and I've had to go back to the dermatologist, and they're on the watch list.

"This is probably something I'll have to keep an eye on for the rest of my life."

Expert projections suggest melanoma skin cancer cases will rise again this year to 21,300 cases across the UK – the highest on record.

Some 87% of melanoma cases – around 17,100 in the UK each year – are caused by over-exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation, which comes from the sun and using sunbeds.

Fiona Osgun, head of health information at Cancer Research UK, said: “As the weather gets warmer, it’s really important to look after yourself in the sun.

“Getting sunburnt just once every couple of years can triple your risk of melanoma skin cancer, compared to never being burnt.

“And it’s not just the hot, sunny days you need to watch out for – UV rays can be strong enough to cause skin damage between mid-March and mid-October in the UK, even when it’s cloudy or cool.

“That’s why we encourage people to take some simple steps to stay safe."