Former Australia captain Michael Clarke has opened up about his painful battle with skin cancer, revealing he has had seven spots cut out from his face, including one off his nose, recently. It was only in August earlier this year when Clarke revealed on social media that his skin cancer had returned.
Clarke's comment came during his interview on 'The Kyle and Jackie O' show, where he said that he needs to visit his dermatologist every six months for regular check-ups and treatment.
"I've got a number cut outs of my face. I had one about four weeks ago off my nose. I see my dermatologist every six months," Clarke said. "The sunspots I get frozen. Normally, if they're basal cell I get them cut out. I think I've had seven cut out of my face. You can't hide them."
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Clarke, who led Australia to the 2015 ODI World Cup title win, had his first skin cancer scare back in 2006 when doctors found suspicious spots on his face. He quickly had them surgically removed from both his face and chest. In the years that followed, Clarke had to undergo multiple procedures to take out cancerous growths from his chest and forehead. Clarke attributed his skin cancer risk to the extensive time he spent in the sun as a cricketer.
{{/usCountry}}Clarke, who led Australia to the 2015 ODI World Cup title win, had his first skin cancer scare back in 2006 when doctors found suspicious spots on his face. He quickly had them surgically removed from both his face and chest. In the years that followed, Clarke had to undergo multiple procedures to take out cancerous growths from his chest and forehead. Clarke attributed his skin cancer risk to the extensive time he spent in the sun as a cricketer.
{{/usCountry}}"I am not surprised that a lot of cricketers have had skin cancers because you spend a lot of time in the sun," Clarke had told 'Daily Telegraph' in 2023.
"Imagine fielding all day in India, out there for eight hours in the sun, a lot of the guys are wearing the baggy green cap so you are not protecting your ears or your face, you've got short sleeved shirts so your arms and the tops of your hands.
"I have been in the sun my entire career. I've always been disciplined with putting sunscreen on, my parents were too. The part I guess I haven't been disciplined with was reapplying. All through my career I put sunscreen on but you sweat it off," he had said.
Clarke announced his international retirement at the age of 34 in 2015, after playing his final game in the Ashes series against England. He enjoyed a stellar career, featuring in 115 Tests, 245 ODIs, and 34 T20Is, and scoring over 17,000 international runs.