Former Dundee United striker Jordan Moore who battled skin cancer twice has been chosen to launch Stand up to Cancer in Scotland.
Jordan, 22, knows only too well that new discoveries and breakthroughs are crucial in helping people like him survive.
He saw a stellar football career cut short by cancer after a rapidly growing mole on the right side of his face turned out to be cancerous. Jordan was just 19 and had netted eight goals in 10 starts while on loan at Dunfermline when the diagnosis of melanoma on January 20, 2014, put at risk everything he’d worked towards.
He endured two operations, including 12 hours of surgery in May 2014, at the Royal Infirmary in Glasgow where 80 lymph nodes were removed.
Nerves were severed on one side of his face and Jordan was left with a scar on his neck.
Now clear of cancer, Jordan who had loan spells playing football with Airdrie, Dunfermline and Queen’s Park, signed for League of Ireland side Limerick in February this year.
But he finally returned home to Scotland in May and has taken the heartbreaking decision to hang up his professional football boots and pursue a new career, possibly as a police officer. And he’s calling on youngsters to be aware of the amount of time they spend in the sun.
He said: “I’m so proud to support Stand Up To Cancer and I want to encourage as many people as possible to join me and stand up to this devastating disease.
“Football has been my whole life so moving on from that now is incredibly tough. I went straight up to Dundee to train full time aged 16 as soon as I left school. I loved my time in Dundee. It’s a brilliant city to live in.
“I trained every day, even on Christmas Day and I’ve never had to think about another job until now. But there is so much more out there that I can do. I want to go down the road of helping people instead of concentrating just on football.
“When I was first told I had skin cancer, the doctor asked me if I was always out in the sun or using sunbeds. I’ve never used sunbeds but I grew up playing football outside every day wearing no sun screen so my skin must have been exposed to the sun all those years. That’s why I now believe it’s vital when kids are out training on football pitches to make sure they’re wearing sun cream to protect their skin.”
Every day, 85 people are diagnosed with cancer in Scotland. By joining Stand Up To Cancer, supporters across Scotland will be uniting with doctors, nurses, scientists and celebrities to generate funds, raise awareness and help accelerate progress in life-saving cancer research.
Lisa Adams, Cancer Research UK’s spokeswoman in Scotland said: “Jordan and his mum’s experience brings home the fact that one in two of us will be diagnosed with cancer at some point in our lives.
“Cancer doesn’t discriminate. Whether it’s you or someone you know, it leaves its mark on us all so the time to act is now. We’re on the brink of a revolution in cancer research.
“Thanks to new treatments, screening and earlier diagnosis, more people are surviving the disease than ever before.
“But we can’t afford to stand still. It’s time to rebel against cancer, raise money and save lives. Research is our weapon against this terrible disease and we’re calling on an army of supporters across Scotland to stand up to cancer and show their support.”
