Christie Brinkley diagnosed with skin cancer

Model, actress and entrepreneur Christie Brinkley announced that she has been diagnosed with skin cancer. (Andy Kropa/Invision/AP)

Model, actress and entrepreneur Christie Brinkley announced that she has been diagnosed with basal cell carcinoma, a common form of skin cancer.

Brinkley shared news of her diagnosis on her Instagram page on Tuesday, writing in the caption that “the good news for me is we caught the basal cell Carcinoma early. And I had great Doctors that removed the cancer and stitched me up to perfection.”

In her post, Brinkley encouraged her followers to be diligent with using sun protection on a day-to-day basis.

“I got serious a bit late so now for this ole mermaid/gardener, I’ll be slathering on my SPF 30, reapplying as needed, wearing long sleeves and a wide brim hat. And doing regular total body check ups,” she wrote.

Brinkley shared that she feels lucky to have caught it early after accompanying her daughter to a checkup, writing, “It wasn’t my appointment so I wasn’t going to say anything but at the VERY end I asked if he could just look at a little tiny dot I could feel as I applied my foundation.”

“He took a look and knew immediately it needed a biopsy! He did it then and there! So make your own good luck by making that check up appointment today. And slather up my friends,” she added before thanking her doctors.

Basal cell carcinoma (BCC) is the most common form of skin cancer and often present as “open sores, red patches, pink growths, shiny bumps, scars or growths with slightly elevated, rolled edges and/or a central indentation,” according to the Skin Cancer Foundation.

Treatment can be highly effective when the cancer is detected early.