Turns out all those warnings about being careful in the sun were right. Below Deck Down Under’s Captain Jason Chambers is embarrassed that he didn’t heed those warnings.
The Below Deck franchise’s sexiest captain was diagnosed with melanoma in December 2024 after noticing some changes to a sunspot on his left side.
“I had a little spot there for many years,” he says. “But it kind of changed color and someone told me I should get it checked out. I went to the doctor and said, ‘Is it that serious?’ And they said, ‘Yeah, you need it taken out now.’”
Captain Jason felt foolish for not realizing the sun’s danger
“It was a little bit too much to take in,” he tells PEOPLE. “There were a lot of scary things.”
Melanoma is one of the three major types of skin cancer. It is no joke and can be deadly if not treated. According to the Mayo Clinic, exposure to sunlight can cause the abnormal growth of cells, which can develop into skin cancer. This is why it’s so important to wear protective clothing, as well as sunscreen. Having that “perfect tan” is not worth dying for.
“Personally, I feel a little bit silly and stupid about it,” Jason confesses. “As someone that’s worked on the water – someone that’s Australian – that I actually didn’t know the severity of skin cancer, and I thought that I was immune to it. I kind of look back at myself and go, really?”
After his biopsy and diagnosis, Jason immediately jumped into researching skin cancer. What he learned made him realize how careless he’d been in the sun.
According to the CDC, unprotected skin can be damaged after as little as 15 minutes’ exposure to the sun’s UV rays. 132,000 melanoma cancers occur worldwide every year, with Captain Jason’s native Australia having one of the highest rates of incidence and mortality (death).
Sadly, this knowledge came as a shock to the charter captain. “I’m out in the sun all day,” he says. “How did I think that I was going to be unique to everyone else?”
Captain Jason made big changes in his life since his cancer scare
Since his diagnosis, Bravo’s Heartthrob of the Sea has undergone two procedures to remove the cancer cells. His prognosis is good, with only a 5% chance of the melanoma returning.
These days Jason’s practicing Australia’s “slip, slop, slap” advice: “slip” on sun-protective clothing, “slop” on sunscreen, and “slap” on a hat before heading out into the sun. It also applies to his 10-year-old daughter Saskia, who often spends time with her dad outdoors.
“I think I’m pretty lucky to be where I am and healthy at my age,” the captain explains. “I had a really bad end of the year … My father’s got Alzheimer’s; Mom’s not well. I had a best friend that passed away, [and] I had melanoma.
“So I started approaching it in a way that my mate that passed away would want me to,” he adds. “I’m going to work on not just physical health, but mental health as well … I want to see how I can get to my absolute best this year.”
Okay, I have to tell you, I’m a California girl. I grew up going to the beach with nothing but baby oil. I was in my 20s before I even knew there was such a thing as sunscreen and that sunburn was optional. Diagnosed with melanoma twenty years ago, I have a four-inch scar on the back of my left arm to prove it. So Captain Jason and I have that in common.
Below Deck Down Under airs Mondays at 8/7c on Bravo.
TELL US – DO YOU PRACTICE THE “SLIP, SLAP, SLOP” ADVICE IN THE SUN?
