Christie Brinkley diagnosed with skin cancer: Supermodel sheds light on her basal cell carcinoma surgery

Christie Brinkley underwent surgery after doctors found a 'basal cell carcinoma' on her face. Photo / Getty Images

American model and actress Christie Brinkley, 70, has revealed she has been diagnosed with skin cancer.

Brinkley has shared a series of graphic pictures on social media, confessing that she had undergone surgery after medical professionals discovered a “basal cell carcinoma” on her face, reports The Daily Mail.

In the pictures, Brinkley showed the wound on her face where the cancer was removed to encourage fans to get their skin checked more frequently.

She captioned the social media post: “The good news for me is we caught the basal cell carcinoma early. And I had great doctors that removed the cancer and stitched me up to perfection like an haute couture Dior.

“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.”

Brinkley was candid about her diagnosis, revealing that doctors picked up on the skin cancer while she was accompanying one of her daughters to a routine check-up. While at the appointment, Brinkley asked the doctor to have a look at a “tiny dot” on her face.

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She shared: “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.”

She went on: “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!

“Thank you to Dr Abraham, Dr Anolik, Dr Geronemus, Dr Lloyd Hoffman at the Laser & Skin Surgery Center of New York.”

Basal cell carcinoma, often referred to as BCC, is a form of non-melanoma skin cancer, meaning it doesn’t involve skin pigment cells. BCC often appears on skin in the form of scabs that bleed.

BCC is the most common type of skin cancer in humans and is particularly prevalent in New Zealand and Australia.

Data suggests that around 70,000 BCCs will be diagnosed each year in New Zealand, which is roughly 2 per cent of the adult population, according to Skintel.