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A TEEN who’s been diagnosed with melanoma twice and had two brain tumours removed, all before the age of 18, has a rare genetic disorder that’s been passed down through her family.

Ruby-Jo Sneed, 18, discovered she had a rare genetic chromosome deletion after undergoing genetic testing aged 12 due to her family’s history of tumours.

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She has chromosome deletion of her CDKN2A gene – which is responsible for producing proteins that act as tumour suppressors – making her more at risk of developing tumours and melanoma.

Over the course of just over two years – from the age of 15 to 18 – Ruby-Jo was diagnosed with melanoma twice and had two non-cancerous brain tumours removed, something she described as a “massive shock.”

She had the second removed recently in December 2024.

Ruby-Jo, a college student, from Hull, said: “I was around 12 years old when I found out I had it.

“At the time I think I had a positive outlook on it, I was excited I could have the day off school sometimes!

“I was quite thrilled to feel special in a way and I didn’t think of the dangers of it at that age.

“But when it actually affected me with the skin cancer and brain tumour it was a massive shock.

“I remember just crying my eyes out, questioning why me?”

The family have traced the mutation back to Ruby-Jo’s grandma who had skin cancer.

Her auntie was then diagnosed with a non-cancerous brain tumour at the age of six in 1981.

Ruby-Jo’s auntie’s son was also diagnosed with a brain tumour aged six and later went on to develop skin cancer before passing away aged just 14 from leukaemia.

And when Ruby-Jo’s brother, Bailey, now 14, was also diagnosed with a benign brain tumour again at the age of six, doctors were sure it was genetic due to the family history.

After establishing that her mum, Laura, 36, had it too, Ruby-Jo had genetic testing when she was 12 and were told that Baily and Ruby-Jo had inherited it out of her and her two sisters.

Ruby-Jo will need skin checks for moles and regular MRI scans every three to six months for the rest of her life.

Her first diagnosis was a brain tumour in September 2022 and she was diagnosed with skin cancer just a month later.

Ruby-Jo said: “When I was 15 there was a melanoma burn and that was removed on 3rd July 2022 just before year 11 and the strange thing about that is that the biopsy should have taken six to eight weeks but it took 13 weeks so we all thought no news is good news but on October 12, 2022 we were told that it was skin cancer.

I had the tumour removed and it was a horrible experience – I was 16 and I’d had a really nice time at prom and suddenly it was scary and traumatising

Ruby-Jo Sneed

“At the same time, I had an MRI and I was diagnosed with a brain tumour in September, just a month before.

“I’d just started year 11 and all I wanted to be focused on was my studies.”

Doctors wanted to see how the tumour would progress, before Ruby-Jo eventually had it removed in July 2023 after it had continued to grow.

She said: “I had the tumour removed and it was a horrible experience – I was 16 and I’d had a really nice time at prom and suddenly it was scary and traumatising.

“But they were able to remove it all and they tested the tumour and it wasn’t what they thought it was – it was a grade two PXA non-cancerous so I never needed any further treatment.”

More skin cancer and another brain tumour

Ruby-Jo began planning for her college studies but had to go back into hospital in April 2024 to have a mole checked.

She had it removed the same month and discovered it was melanoma shortly after.

She said: “They had to remove further tissue from my arm to make sure there was no cancer there.

“On the same day, I was told that my brother had also been diagnosed with stage 1 melanoma skin cancer and was waiting for surgery.”

At an MRI check up in April 2024 doctors also found another brain tumour and Ruby-Jo underwent an operation in December to have it removed.

She said: “I got results in May and I was told I’d been diagnosed with another brain tumour but this time it was in the memory part of my brain which was scarier – thankfully that meant it was very easy to remove.

It can be hard to think about the future knowing it could return

Ruby-Jo Sneed

“Memory is a huge part of your life so we initially looked into radiotherapy as I didn’t want any scary after effects of the surgery but I thought I’ve been through it once, I can do it again.

“They actually then said because I had this chromosome deletion it wouldn’t be possible for me to have the radiotherapy and there would be a higher risk of me developing more brain tumours.

“They gave it some time to see how it would progress and again it had grown so in December it was removed.

“It was a PXA tumour again.”

Ruby-Jo raised over £800 for The Brain Tumour Charity through bake sales, but has admitted that it can be “hard to think about the future knowing it could return.”

But she does hope to one day write a book about her rare genetic disorder.

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She said: “All within two years – it’s hard to think about the future and because it’s happened for a second time already, it could happen a third and fourth time.

“I have suffered more than anything, it’s been my dream to write a book about my life.

“I’ve known since the age of 12 that I’d be at risk of getting skin cancer and brain tumours and I had to live with the fear every day that I might die sooner than a normal person.”

Dollar Tree has become a reliable spot for skincare dupes, makeup, hygiene essentials, cleaning supplies, and holiday decor. However, shoppers say its gardening section could use some TLC. Online, the discount retailer is catching heat for its popular plastic stackable planters. They retail for only $1.25, but many shoppers say they’d rather invest in pots that aren’t "garbage."

RELATED: 4 Worst Dollar Tree Skincare Products, According to an Esthetician.

Designing a garden with "trash quality" planters is a recipe for disaster, said one shopper in a Reddit thread, warning others to steer clear of Dollar Tree’s stackable planters. The controversial product has the internet divided, with many siding against the planter due to its fragility and cheap aesthetic. Conversely, others say that’s to be expected for something with a $1.25 price tag.

The four-tier planter can hold 12 medium-sized plants, with three on each level. The alternating tiers resemble a game of Jenga, allowing each plant room to grow comfortably without invading other nearby greenery.

But it’s not so much the planter’s structure as it is its durability that shoppers are fed up with.

“The ones I bought there cracked very easily and didn’t last the season,” shared one unhappy customer.

A shopper with a similar experience said, “I stopped buying planters at Dollar Tree. Even the $3 ones barely lasted a season…they’re all broken junk. Not worth it.”

The planters also don’t have drain holes, which customers have taken umbrage with. “These are trash. No holes and when you try to pop the holes out they crack,” reads a comment. Another shopper said they had to take a drill to the bottom of the pots to open the sealed drain holes.

However, their plastic modeling is the biggest concern among environmentalists and green thumbs.

“These things become brittle in the sun almost instantly,” one user wrote in another Reddit thread. “These are the worst kind of cheap plastic.”

“Seriously, these are the worst. My family gave me these as a gift a few years ago, they’re terrible planters and I’m still finding bits of plastic all over my yard,” revealed one person.

“Those will probably leech all kinds of nasty stuff,” reads a third comment.

“Have fun cleaning up all the micro plastics from when you try to move it, and it shatters in your hand…So many types of plastic out there that are cheap, but are degraded by sunlight…So unless you're growing in the dark, it's gonna get trash everywhere,” explained another.

RELATED: Dollar Tree Is Selling the Same Exact Beauty Products as Amazon and Walmart for $21 Cheaper.

Plus, their fragility is a liability.

“A stack of those in my yard would probably last exactly as long as it took for one of the neighborhood raccoons to decide it wanted to climb them, and then they wouldn't be in a stack anymore,” another joked.

“Don’t buy this trash,” one customer bluntly stated.

Salt is a regular and beloved staple in most kitchens. It can be used for everything from boiling water faster to tenderizing meat, seasoning dishes, and fermenting foods. But, the World Health Organization (WHO) is cautioning that the common cooking helper is actually at the root of a global health crisis.

In new guidelines released January 27, 2025, the WHO recommends that people worldwide swap their usual table salt for lower-sodium alternatives in an effort to reduce high blood pressure and prevent millions of deaths a year from noncommunicable diseases. Read on to understand these new guidelines and why they affect you.

RELATED: Experts Raise Alarm on the Most Lethal Disease in America: "It's Killing Every 34 Seconds"

Why Is the WHO Recommending Salt Substitutes?

Salt is contributing to a global health crisis that the WHO believes is avoidable. "Globally, each year 1.9 million deaths are attributable to high sodium intake," the organization writes in a summary of their new guidelines.

Diets full of excess sodium can increase the risk of high blood pressure, which can lead to cardiovascular diseases (CVD), stroke, chronic kidney disease, and other potentially deadly medical conditions.

The global average of sodium intake is 4.3 grams per day, according to the most recent stats from 2019. This is twice the WHO's recommended amount of 2 grams per day for adults, which is a guideline that's been in place since 2012 and should be "adjusted downward based on the energy requirements of children."

"Despite efforts made by Member States to achieve the global target to reduce population sodium intake by 30% by 2030, progress has been slow," the WHO states. It admits that sodium chloride (NaCl) is still the "most common form of salt added to foods, both by consumers and in food manufacturing."

To counteract the excessive consumption of sodium worldwide and reduce the risk of related diseases, the WHO is now recommending "urgent and accelerated actions" for everyone—from the average kitchen cook to major food manufacturers—to start adopting lower-sodium salt substitutes.

What Are Lower-Sodium Salt Substitutes?

In stores, you can find these under the labels "low-sodium salt," "heart salt," "mineral salt," or "sodium-reduced salt." The main LSSS the WHO recommends is potassium-enriched salt, which replaces sodium chloride with potassium chloride, has a similar taste, and offers several health benefits.

Potassium is an essential mineral found in foods like beans, peas, nuts, and green vegetables that has the ability to reduce blood pressure and the risk of CVDs. The WHO recommends consuming 3.5 grams of potassium per day, but most people fall short.

By replacing regular table salt with potassium-enriched salt, the worldwide population could prevent hundreds of thousands of deaths from cardiovascular disease each year, studies have shown.

The Challenges of Adopting Healthier Alternatives

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However, there are some reasons why potassium-enriched salt hasn't been widely adopted yet. The WHO reports that concerns have been raised about it's safety "because too high a level of blood potassium (hyperkalaemia) may be harmful, especially to individuals with impaired kidney function."

Research shows that this applies to a small portion of the global population, but still, they are exempt from the WHO's new guidelines.

What's more, according to The Conversation, LSSS are expensive and not widely available. Potassium-enriched salt, for instance, is only sold in 47 countries, sometimes at 15 times the price of regular salt.

The WHO admits these limitations, stating: "Main barriers for consumers include: limited availability of LSSS, higher price, lack of awareness, bad taste and lack of perceived health benefit. The higher cost of LSSS and the concerns around the potentially increased risk of hyperkalaemia in those with kidney disease are potential barriers preventing governments from promoting LSSS."

How to Limit Your Salt Intake

You can consider switching to a lower-sodium salt substitute if you fit the WHO's description of an adult who is not pregnant and does not have a kidney impairment that might compromise potassium excretion.

RELATED: 7 Signs Your Diet Is Secretly Packed With Salt

Other methods to reduce your salt intake include eating more fresh fruits, vegetables, and lean proteins, which are naturally low in sodium. At the same time, avoid processed foods, which can contain excessive amounts of hidden sodium.

Make your meals at home to control how much salt you're using, and if you're buying canned or packaged goods, look for "low-sodium" or "no-salt-added" options. When dining out, ask for less salt when ordering, or choose grilled, steamed, or roasted menu options over fried foods, which are packed with salt.

Making small changes like these can significantly lower your sodium intake, helping to reduce your risk of high blood pressure, heart disease, and stroke.

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