Tyler had been battling health problems over the last few years (Image: Tyler Mears)
In 2021, Reach’s Tyler Mears pursued her long-held dream of relocating to the coast. Tyler and her family took the leap, uprooted their entire lives and headed to Pembrokeshire.
It was absolutely wonderful. They would spend their evenings swimming in the sea, enjoying barbecues on the beach and setting off on lengthy walks. Following several difficult years battling health problems (Tyler had been diagnosed with lupus and kidney failure in 2017), it was the relaxed, peaceful and joyful existence they had always longed for. However, just a few months after making that momentous move, everything was turned on its head once more, reports Wales Online.
A mole on Tyler’s leg had been troubling her for years, yet she had already visited two doctors about it. Both had assured her there was nothing to be concerned about, insisting it was a benign tumour known as a fibroma, possibly triggered by an insect bite. So she continued to push it to the back of her mind. The doctors know best, after all.
Yet, for reasons she couldn’t quite explain, Tyler simply couldn’t rid herself of 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 doctor but fretted about wasting their time.
Several weeks later, while working from home on a glorious sunny day, she was wearing a summer dress. As Tyler leaned back in her chair and glanced down at her leg, that angry-looking mole stared straight back at her. Tyler made up her mind on the spot to bite the bullet and ring her GP. As it turned out, that summer dress very likely saved Tyler’s life. The moment she showed her GP the mole, her concerned expression confirmed that Tyler had made the right call in coming in. She referred Tyler to a specialist, who looked equally alarmed and was keen to arrange its removal without delay.
Despite Tyler’s anxiety, she still refused to let her thoughts drift to the darkest possibility — that it might be cancer. Tyler kept reassuring herself: “It’s an insect bite but we’re just making sure”. So when the specialist asked her to return the following week for surgery, she naively enquired whether it could be postponed. Tyler’s best friend’s 30th birthday was approaching, and she had spent months planning a grand celebration
The specialist looked Tyler directly in the eye and told me it needed to be done as soon as possible. In that moment, she knew deep down it was far more than an insect bite.
Tyler visited the doctors but said the mole was nothing to worry about (Image: undefined)
The months that followed passed in something of a haze. Tyler underwent surgery under local anaesthetic, and the mole was placed in a test tube and dispatched for a biopsy. A follow-up appointment was scheduled for roughly a month later to discuss the results.
A few weeks on, Tyler received a call asking her to come in earlier than planned. The woman on the phone told her to bring someone along. Tyler’s stomach lurched — she knew precisely what they were going to tell her.
Tyler felt like a frightened little girl. What were they going to say? Who should she bring? How would she break the news to people if it was cancer?
She chose to take her mum. Largely because the very thought of having to tell her was utterly shattering. Tyler and her mum entered the appointment together. Tyler could tell immediately from the doctor’s expression what he was about to reveal. Tyler’s heart ached knowing what her mother was moments away from hearing. She’s already endured so much anguish and concern since Tyler’s lupus diagnosis. Tyler’s parents and fiancé have remained remarkably resilient throughout everything, but how will they all manage this?
They took their seats 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 proceeded to explain how Tyler had a malignant melanoma. It was stage 2B. It sounds bad. He told them not to Google it.
The mole on Tyler’s leg had grown in size (Image: Tyler Mears)
Tyler noticed he didn’t use the word cancer. It was all medical terms. But she just wanted it straight. Tyler asked him: “So, it’s cancer then?” And he replied: “Yes.”
At that moment Tyler simply switched into survival mode. She couldn’t even shed a tear. Tyler deliberately avoided looking at her mum because she knew that would trigger a complete breakdown. It was such a peculiar experience. So she sat upright in her seat and matter-of-factly said: “Okay, it’s cancer. What do we do now?”
Both left the hospital clutching a bundle of Macmillan leaflets bearing images of cancer patients on the cover. Tyler’s father was waiting in the car. In the same matter-of-fact tone, she told him it was cancer. Unlike the doctor, Tyler made the conscious decision to use the word outright. She refused to be frightened of it. So Tyler simply said it. She then had to break the news to her fiancé and friends, while her parents faced the harrowing task of informing the rest of the family. She truly doesn’t know how she would have managed without all the wonderful people surrounding me.
A few weeks later came further surgery. Because Tyler’s melanoma was so deep, additional skin had to be removed from around the affected area. A lymph node biopsy would then determine what lay ahead. Had the cancer spread to Tyler’s lymph nodes, from what she could understand, the outlook would not be promising.
Tyler attended the radiotherapy department at Singleton Hospital and spent an hour beneath an enormous nuclear scanner. Dye was injected into her body and the lymph node to be removed from her groin was carefully marked out. Tyler recalled lying there, staring upwards and counting the ceiling tiles. She lost count several times and started again — but it helped the time pass.
She then travelled to a separate hospital in Port Talbot for major surgery on Tyler’s leg and groin. Sitting in the waiting room beforehand felt utterly surreal. This Morning was playing on the television and people sat leafing through magazines as though it were the most ordinary thing imaginable. She thinks that actually helped her. She kept reminding herself: “Look how normal all this is.”
The surgery was done. And then came the waiting. The waiting was undoubtedly the most harrowing part of the entire ordeal. Carrying on with everyday life – getting up, making breakfast, doing chores – as though Tyler wasn’t waiting to hear, to put it plainly, whether she was going to survive. Tyler did her utmost to appear composed and resilient, but the reality hit her in waves. Every time a melancholy song came on, she found myself wondering whether it might be played at her funeral. One evening, a cancer storyline appeared on television and Tyler broke down in tears, utterly unable to stop.
The mole was cut out with additional skin around it also had to be removed (Image: Tyler Mears)
Several weeks later, Tyler was summoned back. The dread gnawing at her stomach was overwhelming. It felt as though, if she allowed it, it would completely consume her. Tyler kept forcing those dark thoughts aside, retreating once more behind her composed, matter-of-fact exterior.
This time, Tyler’s mother wasn’t permitted to accompany her. Tyler walked in alone. The surgeon who had carried out the operation – an incredibly kind woman – explained that the procedure had been a success. She looked at Tyler warmly and told her the cancer had not spread. The crushing dread instantly gave way to an overwhelming sense of relief. It felt as though Tyler could breathe properly for the first time in weeks.
Despite the positive outcome, the emotional toll of enduring a cancer scare does not simply vanish. There are still days when she is gripped by intense panic and anxiety.
Tyler must attend monitoring appointments every three months for five years, during which all her moles are thoroughly examined. Strangely, Tyler never truly appreciated just how many she had before. At the risk of sounding indelicate – Tyler’s bum is absolutely covered in them! Of course, there remains a chance that the cancer could return.
Around one in 10 people who receive a negative lymph node biopsy result still die within 10 years. Yet, thanks to the remarkable NHS and that inexpensive summer dress she purchased from Primark, Tyler was not among the 3,200 people who lost their lives to skin cancer this year, and for that she is eternally grateful and considers herself incredibly fortunate.
So please, she urges you, if you discover a mole and have any concerns – do not delay. Trust your instincts. Be one of the lucky ones, just like her.
