MP Sir Chris Bryant issues 'silent killer' warning as UK weather improves

Sir Chris Bryant said melanoma could have been a “death sentence” as he revealed his ordeal and urged people to be careful in hot weather, calling deck chairs “killing machines”.

Sir Chris Bryant warns of dangers of skin cancer

A Labor MP has revealed he had to have skin cancer removed from his lung, revealing a scan saved him from a “death sentence”.

Sir Chris Bryant has issued a powerful warning as the weather improves, saying sun damage can be fatal. Sir Chris called deckchairs “killing machines” when describing his ordeal.

The Rhondda MP had a melanoma removed in 2019 after her husband Jared spotted a mole on the back of her head. In January, a scan revealed a problem in his lung, which turned out to be skin cancer.

He told Sky News: “They had found something in my lung that they thought was probably melanoma – not lung cancer, but skin cancer in my lung, which would obviously be very serious.

“It’s stage four metastatic cancer, so very scary.” He said: “I then had to have a robot inside my lung, they collapsed my lung, cut it a little bit. It was tiny, but surprisingly, if I hadn’t done my scan , I would have come back a year, 18 months, saying: “My chest really hurts” and that would have been a death sentence.”

Sir Chris said he feared many had gone out in clear weather this weekend, ignoring the danger posed by the sun. He warned: “Skin cancer really kills. And yesterday a lot of people would have been out in the sun, absolutely enjoying the fact that they could get a tan and everything else. But the truth is that all this happened to me head and skin cancer in my lungs, all due to sun damage.”

And in an appeal to viewers, he said: “The most important thing is, especially for children, but for everyone, to avoid the sun, cover up and use high-factor sunscreen. Remember that sunscreen may be expired.

“I urge people to never use deckchairs, I think they are killing machines I’m afraid. And in particular, please protect children. Don’t joke about turning pink in the sun, I know it’s the great British joke, but it’s not funny.”