08/18/2026
On July 4th, 2025, I received my melanoma diagnosis.
One of the biggest lessons it taught me was the importance of knowing your skin and recognizing when something changes.
Melanoma doesn’t always look obvious, and knowing what to look for can make all the difference.
This process is known as metastasis, it’s what makes Melanoma one of the more serious forms of skin cancer.
And although melanoma accounts for the smallest percentage of skin cancer diagnoses, it is responsible for the majority of skin cancer-related deaths worldwide.
Melanoma is more complex than many people realize. It develops when DNA damage occurs within the melanocytes, the pigment-producing cells responsible for creating melanin.
Overtime, this damage can interfere with the normal mechanisms that regulate cell growth and repair.
Routine checks are one of the most effective tools for detecting melanoma early.
I had always been familiar with my family history, and was aware that melanoma had affected multiple relatives across different generations.
Most people diagnosed with melanoma do not have one of the inherited mutations, however, when it’s spread across multiple family members or generations, healthcare providers generally recommend genetic evaluation to better understand overall risk.
Regular monitoring allows you to recognize subtle changes sooner and seek professional evaluation when needed 🤎
What began as a routine appointment became one of the most perspective-shifting experiences of my life.
Listen to it. Learn from it. Pay attention to it.
With love,
Jordan 🦋🤎✨