John Cena has been diagnosed with skin cancer twice.

The 47-year-old actor and WWE legend - who will retire from wrestling at the end of 2025 - has admitted he "never" used to wear sunscreen, even after later moving from Massachusetts to Florida in his early 20s.

Recalling how he "fell in love with the sun", he told PEOPLE magazine how he "neglected" his skin.

He said: "I was stubborn. I didn't want to have a routine and I also thought the problem would never reach me.

"And it's one of those things where I had a ton of exposure with minimal protection and it caught up with me."

There were consequences, as he later changed his outlook after a "cancerous spot" was found on his body.

revealed: "It wasn't until I went to a dermatologist and got a skin checkup and had a cancerous spot removed from my right pec."

He had the spot removed, but later received a phone call saying he had to "come back in".

He remembered: "I was very lucky to have a great dermatologist who kind of, I guess for lack of a better term, held me by the hand and let me know that I wasn't alone.

"The stats on this are overwhelming, but as much as I learn about them, those numbers don't mean anything. I think the best way to hammer home a point is human-to-human connection.

"And I as a human can tell you: Man, that phone call's not what you want to get because it is unpredictable and you don't know how bad it's going to be."

The following year, he returned to have "another spot removed", and he noted that eagle eyed WWE fans can still see the scars.

He added: "A year later I went back and had another spot removed close to my right shoulder.

"It shows up like a white polka dot on the side of my chest and on my shoulder. If you watch WWE, you'll be able to see them."

The health scares have changed Cena's outlook, and now the Hollywood star - who is teaming up with Neutrogena on a new campaign - makes sure to protect his skin with sunscreen.

He said: "I'm at a great space in my life where that's now important to me.

"And I'm so grateful to be able to dodge those two bullets, but I wear them as a reminder of, 'Hey man, you need to take the extra few seconds to protect yourself every day.' "