This past March, Christie Brinkley took to social media to share her skin cancer diagnosis. In a post shared to her Instagram feed, the 70-year-old supermodel bravely opened up about her journey with basal cell Carcinoma, revealing she was fortunate that her doctor caught it early.
In a red carpet interview with Entertainment Tonight on Sunday, May 19, Brinkley shared a message to fans, stressing the importance of regular skin cancer screenings. She described her skin cancer diagnosis as having “happened so randomly,” saying that she “might not have known” if she hadn’t asked her daughter’s doctor on a whim.
“It’s so important for people to get checked,” she told the outlet. “I happened to be accompanying my daughter, Alexa, and I said, ‘Oh, while you’re at it, can you just look at this?’ and he said, ‘Oh, I have to do a biopsy immediately.'”
This isn’t the first time she’s urged her social media following to be proactive when it comes to their skin. In her Instagram post, she elaborated on her experience getting treatment. “I had great Doctors that removed the cancer and stitched me up to perfection like an haute couture Dior,” she captioned a photo of her with a bandage on her head post-surgery. “The good news for you is that all of this can be avoided by being diligent with your sun protection!”
“I got serious a bit late so now for this ole mermaid/gardener, I’ll be slathering on my SPF 30, reapplying as needed, wearing long sleeves and a wide brim hat,” she continued. “And doing regular total body check ups..that is a MUST! I was lucky to find mine, because I was accompanying one of my daughters to HER check up.
The Doctor was looking at each freckle with a magnifying glass… it wasn’t my appointment so I wasn’t going to say anything but at the VERY end I asked if he could just look at a little tiny dot I could feel as I applied my foundation. He took a look and knew immediately it needed a biopsy! He did it then and there! So make your own good luck by making that check up appointment today. And slather up my friends!”
In the wake of her skin cancer scare, Brinkley’s been busy. She recently starred on the cover of SI Swimsuit’s 60th anniversary Legends issue, one of 52 influential women who have graced the magazine cover over the years. “I think I got a little emotional this year because I just had my 70th birthday and they’re [referencing the magazine] just a young whippersnapper at 60,” she told ET, referencing the magazine. “But I thought, ‘Who does that? Who includes 70-year-olds and dares to put Martha Stewart in a swimsuit at 80?’ I have to applaud that because as we age, we start to feel invisible,” she added, and it’s so amazing to have a magazine honoring us with that.”
