THE HEARTBREAKING story of tragic Zoe Panayi is being shared by her family in the hope of helping others and changing the law.

Zoe died from melanoma skin cancer at the young age of 26, leaving behind her two young sons.

After a rapid decline due to terminal cancer, Zoe died on May 29, 2020, just 55 days after her diagnosis.

She had a mole, which bled when her jeans rubbed on it. She was worried about it for two years but had been told it was nothing to worry about.

She paid to have it cosmetically removed and thought those undertaking the treatment would test it to see if it was cancerous, but that wasn't part of the treatment.

It wasn't until she was suddenly in dreadful pain and terribly ill, that Zoe was diagnosed — and by then it was too late.

Zoe worked as an auxiliary nurse at St Mary's Hospital while bringing up her young children, before finally getting her ideal job as an assistant to the radiography and CT department.

It was her experience in seeing scans that alerted her to the severity of her cancer when she saw her own.

Zoe's mum, Eileen Punter, has since called for GPs to take moles and skin tags more seriously.

The family started a petition calling for the the testing of all moles removed to be standard practice at private clinics.

The family say: "If you notice a change in a new or existing mole then you should contact your GP as soon as possible and insist it is properly tested and investigated. Do not allow yourself to be fobbed off."

The petition has been signed by nearly the 25,000 people needed to become one of the top-signed on change.org.

Find it here: change.org/p/uk-parliament-make-it-zoe-s-law-ensure-all-moles-tags-removed-are-tested-by-law-for-melanoma-cancer

A birthday ball in memory of Zoe is being held at Gurnard Pines on March 12 and has sold out. It is being held to raise awareness of Zoe's Law but also raise money for Mountbatten, where Zoe was so well cared for.

Zoe is survived by her children, Theo-Jay and Tobias, mother Eileen, father Charlie, brothers and sisters Charlie, Marie, Terry and Chris and stepfather Stuart Punter.

The family are well-known for running Red Squirrel Property Shop.