Richmond star Jack Riewoldt reveals cancer scare

Richmond full forward Jack Riewoldt has revealed he is undergoing regular health checks after a skin cancer scare.

Riewoldt was forced to go under the knife in 2007 to have a melanoma removed that had the potential to kill.It was cancerous and resulted in a second bout of surgery to have more tissue removed."When I first got it cut out I was thinking 'That's right. There will be nothing wrong'," Riewoldt told the Herald Sun."Then it dawns on you, 'Bloody hell. I might be in some strife here'."It was pretty close. It was cancerous, and .9mm was the depth of it."Once they start getting to 1mm is when they get scary, and they talk about taking out your glands," he said.Riewoldt was just 18 years old at the time, having completed his first season in the AFL."I had played eight games, and you have an invincible feeling about yourself," he said."It couldn’t happen to me — surely not. But then it did. It makes you feel vulnerable, when you find out," he said."I am very thankful that my girlfriend said I had to get the mole checked out and wasn’t going to stop hassling me until I did."Riewoldt, whose Tigers will play Sydney this weekend for a place in the AFL finals, revealed his health scare after agreeing to lead the AFL Players' Association and Cancer Council Victoria's Make More Memories campaign.Its primary aim is to convince men to have difficult conversations about cancer and so ensure they survive to 'make more memories'.