Young Adelaide mum forced to have eye sewn shut after subtle symptom noticed at eyelash appointment
A young Adelaide mum-of-four was forced to have her eye sewn shut after her beauty appointment led to a terrifying health diagnosis.
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A young Adelaide mum-of-four has had her eye sewn shut after a lash technician spotted a subtle symptom on her bottom lid which lead to a terrifying diagnosis.
Chloe Boulden discovered a tiny spot on her lash line when she went to get eyelash extensions in October 2022.
The spot beneath the 28-year-old’s left eye continued to grow and become red over the next few months and Chloe became concerned.
A year later – in October 2023 – a skin check up, which led to an urgent appointment and a subsequent biopsy – revealed that Chloe had basal cell carcinoma, a form of skin cancer, often caused by sun exposure.
The mum was forced to have the cancerous part of her eye cut away and a skin graft taken from her neck to replace it, in a full eye reconstructive surgery.
She had to have her eye sewn shut for weeks, to establish blood supply to the graft.
Now Chloe wants to remind others of the importance of sun protection and to warn people to “take skin cancer seriously”.
“To be 28 years old and need a full eyelid reconstruction is pretty devastating – when I went for the surgery, I was very emotional,” Chloe told The Sun.
“Unfortunately I found out the cancer had spread and I need another surgery, but fingers crossed that’ll be it then.
“I never thought anything like this would happen to me – people seem to think skin cancer isn’t as dangerous as other cancers, but it can be.
“And it can happen to anyone – no matter your age or gender.”
Since becoming a mum to Aaliyah, 10, Amaya, eight, Orlo, five and Meadow, three, Chloe takes sun safety seriously.
But when she was a teenager, Chloe would sunbathe for hours with no protection.
She would even apply tanning oil with no SPF.
When Chloe was first alerted to the spot by her lash technician, she didn’t think much of it.
She got it checked out anyway but the optometrist believed it was just a blocked tear duct and prescribed an ointment.
Another doctor dismissed it a few months later.
It wasn’t until the skin check when it was picked up.
“He checked my face and asked how long I had the lump on my eye,” Chloe said.
“He said: ‘I don’t mean to scare you, but this doesn’t look good’.
“I was oblivious and in shock – I didn’t even think it could be cancerous.
“It sunk in when I went to the plastic surgeon and he confirmed it was cancerous.”
The plastic surgeon said he “took one look and instantly knew”.
While the surgery to remove the cancer was successful, Chloe learnt it had spread and had slightly wider margins than anticipated.
She will need another surgery on May 29 which will remove further cancer cells.
Doctors will also unstitch her eye so she’ll be able to see out of it again.
“I can’t go and play football with the kids, because I can’t catch – I’ve lost all depth perception,” Chloe said.
“Mentally, I’d love to just hide in a hole, but as a parent unfortunately that can’t happen.
“My husband Drew, 31, is a fly-in-fly-out worker so he’s away with work, but I have a good family support network at home.”
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Originally published as Young Adelaide mum forced to have eye sewn shut after subtle symptom noticed at eyelash appointment
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