Twitch superstar Richard Blevins, usually referred to by his stage name "Ninja," revealed on Wednesday evening that he was diagnosed with melanoma after a routine dermatological screening.
Blevins, 32, is a professional gamer who gained a devoted following on the streaming app Twitch, for his videos showing him playing the popular game, "Fortnite Battle Royale." His Twitch account boasts more than 19 million followers and he has made videos with celebrities, including Drake and Travis Scott.
"Alright, I'm still in a bit of shock but want to keep you all updated," Blevins shared in a post on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.
"A few weeks ago I went in to a dermatologist for an annual skin/mole check that [his wife] Jess proactively scheduled for me. There was a mole on the bottom of my foot that they wanted to remove just to be careful. It came back as melanoma, but they are optimistic that we caught it in the early stages."
What Is Melanoma?
Melanoma is a common form of skin cancer which occurs when the cells that give skin its color become cancerous. It is frequently found in people with a history of sunburns and rates of diagnosis are seemingly increasing in people under 40, according to the Mayo Clinic.
Blevins added that a second dark spot appeared near where the cancerous mole was removed.
"Today they biopsied that and removed a larger area around the melanoma with the hopes that under the microscope they will see clear non-melanoma edges and we will know we got it," he wrote.
Blevins' announcement comes in the wake of other high-profile celebrities announcing cancer diagnoses. Catherine, Princess of Wales, recently revealed that she was undergoing preventative chemotherapy after doctors detected cancer during an abdominal surgery. Fitness guru Richard Simmons also revealed that he underwent three rounds of treatment to remove skin cancer, earlier this month.
Melanoma is typically treatable if it is found early enough. Common symptoms include unusual moles appearing on the skin or new growth in preexisting moles. Blevins used his diagnosis as an opportunity to encourage other people to get preventive screenings.
"I'm grateful to have hope in finding this early," he wrote. "Please take this as a PSA to get skin checkups."
