Woman shares pictures of her treatment for pre-cancerous cells to warn of the dangers of sunbeds

A mother-of-one has shared shocking images of her treatment for pre-cancerous cells to raise awareness of the dangers of sun damage.

Mags Murphy, 45, had spent years living abroad in Crete, and used sunbeds to keep her tan topped up when at home in Ireland - but a diagnosis of pre-cancerous cells on her face has caused her to rethink her lifestyle and warn others of the risks involved.

'I heard all the warnings years ago and closed my eyes and ears to it all,' she said. 'Maybe someone will open their eyes to this if it's closer to home. I'm not looking for sympathy just to raise awareness.'

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'Guess if you're reading this you'll know me, you'll know how much I love sunshine, you'll know I've spent over a decade living in Crete tanning myself to "look good" thinking "hey I'm brown I don't need high sun factor" (what a d*ck)', she explained in her initial post.

'I've spent summers doing sunbeds just for a tan in the s***** Irish weather and a childhood running the streets all day with not a thought for sun factor,' she wrote on her Facebook page, Mag's Murphys Journey.

'Unfortunately all this lovely tanning has a price to pay cause now I have PRE cancerous cells on my face and have started treatment to remove them.'

'I have to use a cream that's going to burn them out, apparently it's quite painful and gruesome as the weeks go on. But on the good side it should get rid of the cells and treatment and is only for a month.'

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'I'm sharing this to try and raise awareness to sun damage and using high factor sunlotion,' she added. 'I'm going to post pictures and videos throughout the treatment. I'd love for people to share and like the f*ck out of this page.'

'I'm not looking for sympathy just to raise awareness. PLEASE SHARE especially with your tan loving friends'.

Since then, Mags has posted day-by-day updates of her skin's progress, going from feeling like she's 'shaved her face wih a dry razor' on day 6, to her face burning so much she'd been 'throwing up all day' on day 15.

Since she started sharing her story, Mags' page has received more than 11,000 likes and comments from people around the world who empathise with her plight.

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'Well done for using your experience to highlight the dangers to others. Best wishes with your treatment and for the future,' one said, whilst another added: 'Keep strong and well done for spreading the message'.

'This is one of the posts on my page,' Mags herself wrote alongside an emotional comment from a poster who currently has stage 4 melonoma.

'Hopefully people will heed warnings now. Unfortunately she's not as lucky as me.'