Around a year ago I was just finishing my 3.59pm talkup, at the start of my show – the bit where I take over from Shelagh Fogarty. I saw her looking at me rather intently. As the news started she said to me: “You should get that looked at.” I had no clue what she was referring to at first, but it was a black mole type mark on the side of my head. Until I started to shave my head I had no clue that it was there. My GP had never mentioned it, but Shelagh advised me to go to The Mole Clinic, which handily is located in Argyll Street, just around the corner from the CNN studios. It cost £45 I think and to cut a not very long story short, it turned out to be absolutely fine, and nothing to worry about. So far, so good.

In the months since then I’ve had several emails from people saying they saw me on TV and urged me to get my mole checked out. i replied to each one thanking them for their concern, explaining I had already done so and it was fine.

A year later, a few weeks ago, I got a reminder email from The Mole Clinic asking if I’d like them to take another look, and would I like a full body scan. Initially I thought I wouldn’t, but then I thought, well I have got the odd blemish here and there, why not. It involved having to strip off and a nurse examining my skin with some sort of hand held microscope thing. She found three or four moles, including one on my back and one on the back of my left knee. She took photos and sent them off to be analysed.

Three days later I got an UNKNOWN number on my phone. It was the Mole Clinic. I had that slightly empty feeling in the pit of my stomach. I was informed that the lab reckoned that two moles looked as if they could be pre-cancerous and I needed to urgently come into the clinic again to see a Dermatologist. Gulp.

A few days later I went in and was told that the mole on my back and and mole on the back of my knee needed to be removed. They said it was precautionary. I was given the choice of having it surgically removed or ‘shaved’ off. Both would involve local anaesthetics.

So after CNN Talk on Monday lunchtime and before my LBC show, that’s what I’ll be doing. Having two moles removed.

Why am I telling you all this? For one reason only. To urge you to get yourself checked out too. I nearly didn’t. I don’t know what the consequences would have been had I not done it – possibly none. I didn’t know the moles were there because I couldn’t see them. But they are so small anyway, maybe I wouldn’t have noticed them anyway.

A full body examination costs £145. It’s money well spent.

Visit The Mole Clinic’s website HERE

For the avoidance of doubt I have no commercial relationship with The Mole Clinic and they have not asked me or paid me or offered free treatment. I’ve paid the full rate.