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Jim Chalmers reveals his shocking health diagnosis and calls on Australians to do more to protect their health after skin cancer scare.
- Treasurer Jim Chalmers has revealed that he had a dangerous diagnosis of skin cancer
- Chalmers said he was diagnosed with melanoma on his chest in late 2020.
- He said it was there for a long time and he checked it out as an afterthought.
- The melanoma was surgically removed but caused various health complications.
- Chalmers urged all Australians to go ahead with regular skin checks.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers revealed he had a skin cancer scare and warned Australians to be vigilant about their health.
Chalmers said she was diagnosed with melanoma on her chest in late 2020 and is now speaking out about it to raise awareness.
‘I was one of those very accommodating guys, frankly; Growing up in Queensland in the summer holidays, you rarely wear a shirt, put on very little sunscreen and get a bit complacent about the sun,” he said on 2CC.
I became especially accommodating about a mark on my chest that had been there for a while.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers (pictured with his children) revealed that he had a melanoma surgically removed
Mr. Chalmers only had the mark examined while he was in the doctor’s office.
“As he punched me a script on his keyboard, I said, ‘What do you think of this here on my chest?'” he said.
“I could tell by his face and what he said afterwards that I needed to be checked.
“I did and it was a melanoma and I had to get it off my chest.”
After the melanoma was surgically removed, Chalmers said she suffered some postoperative “dramas” in the wake of the discovery.
“Even in Question Time, I had a little bomb attached to my chest at one point and a few other things like that,” he said.
“For me, I had a good couple of months, really, to think about what it means to take better care of myself and pay more attention to my health. Like many Australians, I can do much better at that.’
Mr Chalmers (above) said he had various complications following surgical removal of his skin cancer and at one point had a “little bomb” attached to his chest.
Mr Chalmers encouraged Australians to get regular skin checks (above) to eliminate dangerous skin cancers before they get worse
Chalmers said he was well aware of how bad things could have gone if the trademark was not reviewed.
“People die from skin cancer, but it’s also a very common thing, and luckily it’s increasingly common for people to find it early enough to do something about it,” he said.
“Obviously it can be life threatening if you don’t fix it in time, and even though I left mine too late, I got there with the help of the doctor and surgeon to get it fixed in time.”
Now he has called on Australians to do more to take care of their health.
‘We cannot be complacent about these things; we have to have these checks, we have to put on the sunblock and the rashie and the hats,’ he said.
“A lot of us are really good at doing that when it comes to our kids, but when it comes to our own health, when we get in the pool or at the beach or go for a run or whatever.” to be, we have to be very smart with the sun.’