Linda's Story
“I want people to be aware of the signs of skin cancer and to go to their GP and get any skin changes checked. Don’t think that skin cancer can’t happen to you, because you don’t know what a skin change could be unless you get it checked.”
In August 2023, Linda Dooley from Dublin noticed that a pimple was growing out of a large birthmark on the top of her son Fionn’s arm. Then aged 13, Fionn wasn’t concerned but Linda wanted to get it checked.
“I said to Fionn, ‘What’s that pimple and how long has it been there?’,” recalls Linda. “Fionn just shrugged it off, but I took him to our GP anyway. I think he thought I was making a big deal out of nothing.
“We went to our GP, and we were told that skin cancer doesn’t really happen to kids his age – he was 13 – but they referred us to Crumlin Children’s Hospital anyway, just in case it was something.”
Linda didn’t notice any other changes in Fionn, bar tiredness and difficulty waking up in the morning which she put down to him being an active teenager. They went to Crumlin Children’s Hospital for their appointment in January 2024.
“They wanted to excise and biopsy the pimple, but we’d been waiting over an hour by the time they saw us, and Fionn hated hospitals and found it really difficult having to wait. He just said, ‘No, I can’t. I need to go’. So we went back a few days later, and they did it then.
“We got a call a couple of weeks after that, from our consultant’s secretary, saying the consultant wanted to see us the next day – that was the first time I realised it could be something serious. We met the consultant and he said the pimple was suspicious, but it was difficult to diagnose so they wanted to send the sample to an expert in London.”
The specialist in London confirmed that it looked suspicious but wasn’t able to detect exactly what it was. Fionn then underwent an operation where his entire birthmark and pimple were removed, and he had an auxiliary node clearance. Tests confirmed that he had melanoma which had spread to his lymph nodes.
“At this stage, I was still very much thinking that this was all very weird, but they’ll treat the melanoma, it’ll be removed, and everything will end up fine,” says Linda. “I kept thinking, ‘It’s only a little bit of melanoma’, so I wasn’t overly concerned about it.
“We told Fionn it was cancer after he had his operation to remove the birthmark and the lymph nodes, once we had confirmation that it was cancer. I think he felt very much like we did, that it wasn’t a big deal and it would all be OK."
In May 2024, Fionn began his treatment of 12 sessions of immunotherapy. An avid footballer, he still trained regularly with his local football club and tried to keep routine as much as he could. He finished his treatment in March 2025, and all was going well.
“Three months later, in June, Fionn had a CT scan and we got great news – everything came back clear and he was told he’d continue to have scans every three months.”
However, that August, Fionn went back for his next scan which showed his cancer had returned and spread.
"That scan showed the cancer had come back and was widespread throughout his body. Then we had to tell Fionn. I told him the cancer had returned, and he was devastated, but we didn’t know let him know, at that stage, the extent of it."
“The plan was to start double-agent immunotherapy – the previous treatment was single-agent immunotherapy – but after two sessions of it, he had really bad nausea and vomiting and it was getting worse, so he was admitted to hospital to help control that.”
Fionn also started to develop other symptoms, like restless legs and twitches. His medical team decided to do a brain MRI to see if it could identify the cause of Fionn’s symptoms.
“The day after the MRI, Fionn was back in hospital as a day patient for an IV anti-emetic when his consultant asked me to come down to her room for a private word,” says Linda. “There was another person there when we got to the room – she explained that he was a palliative care consultant.
“She said the scan showed Fionn had leptomeningeal disease that was in the lining of his brain and continued to his spine and they expected he had about two months to live. The consultant said it was untreatable.”
The Dooleys were devastated but focused on making Fionn’s last Christmas and New Year a memorable time for him. They also accessed the Irish Cancer Society’s Children’s Fund which helped Fionn and his family in his final months.
“The Irish Cancer Society’s Children’s Fund was huge for us,” says Linda. “It meant we were able to make more memories with Fionn without worrying about finances, and I know the money brought a lot of joy to Fionn and was a nice thing for him when he was going through so much.”
In late January 2026, Fionn’s condition began to deteriorate. His family were linked in with the Irish Cancer Society’s Night Nursing service, so Fionn could pass away at home.
“Fionn’s 16th birthday was that Saturday,” says Linda. “He had been in hospital that week but came home on the Friday. The Irish Cancer Society Night Nurse came at 11 that night, and it was a relief because it meant I knew I’d be able to get a few hours’ sleep. Knowing that a nurse was coming to the house to look after Fionn was great, and she was so helpful.
“I’d just gone to bed when at 11.10pm my husband Chris started calling me. When I went into the room, he said Fionn has just stopped breathing and had passed away. He passed away so peacefully, and he would’ve turned 16 the next day."
“The Night Nurse called our GP after Fionn passed away, and he came to the house about half an hour later. The Night Nurse took care of Fionn even after he passed away. We wouldn’t have known what to do if she wasn’t there.”
Linda is sharing her family’s experience to encourage people to get any skin changes they notice, either on themselves or on their children, checked by their GP, and to raise awareness of melanoma.
“We knew nothing about melanoma before Fionn was diagnosed, and I don’t think the general public are very aware of it either,” adds Linda.
The Dooleys, including Linda, Chris and Fionn’s three siblings, continue to grapple with their loss but are determined to honour their son and brother’s memory.
“Being out in nature was quite a big thing for Fionn,” says Linda, “and because of that, we’re going to scatter some of his ashes in the Dublin mountains.
“He was so kind and caring through everything he went through. He never complained. He always just got on with things and was always more concerned about others.”
