But four years ago, when she went to the doctor to have a mole on her arm checked out, she was horrified to discover she had a malignant melanoma – the onset of skin cancer.

Working in a hospital Kirsty, now 31, admits she should have known better, but her love affair with the sunbed started in her teens when there was little known about the potential dangers.

"I started using sunbeds when I was 18 and I just felt better with a bit of colour, it gives you a warm glow," says Kirsty.

"I started off using them just once a week, but when I got into my twenties I was going on them four times a week. I did it because everyone wants to be tanned and healthy looking."

But now fully recovered, Kirsty is issuing a warning to other sunbed users.

"There are warnings on the machines, but if I'd known I was doing myself so much damage, I'd never have taken the risk.

"You never think cancer will happen to you."

In April 2004, Kirsty spotted a large mole on her left arm had become raised and visited her GP to have it checked out as a precaution.

"I visited my GP, who advised me to see a dermatologist. I put it off as I had a holiday booked, but even when I went they didn't think it would be serious.

"I had a biopsy in the October and I got the news I had skin cancer. I was in tears. My family was panicking and I didn't know whether I was going to live or die. They said the cancer was quite deep and it could be life-threatening. I couldn't believe all this was happening because I'd wanted a tan."

Three days before Christmas 2004, Kirsty went into hospital to have the mole removed, then faced an anxious wait before it was confirmed that the cancer had disappeared, to the delight of her and rugby player husband Shaun, 28.

"I'll have to go back for check-ups every three months for the next two years, then every six months until they're happy the cancer has gone. I was lucky – six months later and I would have died."

Kirsty, from Halifax and a blood nurse at Calderdale Hospital, must now keep covered from 11am to 3pm and wear sunblock throughout the year. She has organised a number of fund-raising and awareness events for the Bradford, Airedale and Wharfedale Charitable Trust.

She added: "I would urge people to go to their GP with any symptoms – like a mole that is sore or has changed in appearance, wear high factor sun block and never use a sunbed. I am sensible about covering up now and prefer to use fake or spray tans because they are much safer. There are so many safe spray tans on the market, they look the same and cost about the same, but they don't damage your skin like the ultra-violet light does on a sunbed."

A recent report by Cancer Research UK discovered that eight out of 10 sunbed users have increased their risk of a life-threatening form of skin cancer by about 75 per cent.

The survey of 4,000 people, commissioned by the charity, found that the vast majority of sunbed users (82 per cent) first soaked up the artificial tan enhancing rays before they were 35. This is particularly dangerous according to a report published by the International Agency for Research into Cancer which found that people who start using sunbeds under the age of 35 increase their risk of malignant melanoma by 75 per cent. The survey also found that as many as one in three women had used a sunbed. For men and women, the figure was one in four.

As a result of the survey, Cancer Research UK launched its SunSmart campaign with a warning to sunbed users that over exposure to UV rays in the tanning salon can prove as dangerous as getting burnt on the beach.

Rebecca Russell, Cancer Research UK's SunSmart campaign manager, says: "You can't see the damage that UV does straight away. It builds up over time. But every time you use a sunbed, you are harming your skin and increasing your risk of skin cancer. Our key message is to alert young people about the damage sunbeds can do, especially if they have fair skin

"We would like legislation to prevent under 18s using sunbeds and to ban unmanned coin-operated sunbeds which can attract under-age and vulnerable users."

skin cancer: the facts

Over exposure to artificial UV in sunbeds is just as dangerous as staying out too long in sun. It is a misconception that sunbeds have had harmful rays removed. The intensity of UV rays from sunbeds can be 10-15 times higher than the midday sun. Repeated exposure to UV damages the DNA in skin cells which increases the risk of skin cancer and makes skin age faster. Malignant melanoma is now the most common cancer in young adults aged between 15 and 34 and can be fatal. More women are diagnosed with melanoma but more men die from the disease. In the UK almost 9,000 cases of malignant melanoma are diagnosed each year – and more than 1,800 die.