It is true, fans are an essential part of any sport. Without fans, sport loses its essence. Fans not only encourage and motivate athletes to give their best, but equally support them and look out for them in their downfall. One such phenomenal NHL fan went above and beyond to save the life of someone who was unaware of the danger he was exposed to.
Nadia Popovici, an NHL fan, spotted a mole on the neck of an equipment manager while at a game and instantly brought it to his notice as the mole was cancerous.
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Fan spots life-threatening mole at NHL match
Nadia Popovici was in the stands at the NHL match between Vancouver Canucks and Seattle Kraken. However, she was far too distracted after spotting a certain mole on the back of Brian Hamilton, assistant equipment manager for the Vancouver Canucks.
Measuring about 2 centimeters, and red-brown in color, the mole looked like the ones that Popovici had been warned about. She was taught to spot these moles while being a nursing assistant.
On 10/23 #SeaKraken fan Nadia Popovici urgently banged on the glass to alert @Canucks Asst. Equipment Manager Brian Hamilton of an abnormal mole that turned out to be life-threatening.
Today, they reunited for the first time since she saved his life → https://t.co/ueSuAwoz6s pic.twitter.com/zd8d8Rn7PU
— Seattle Kraken (@SeattleKraken) January 2, 2022
At first, she thought that she would be crossing a line informing Hamilton about the mole, but at the same time, she felt obligated to do the right thing. Hence, she decided to inform him.
She typed a message on her phone and waved it frantically until it caught Hamilton’s attention.
“The mole on the back of your neck is possibly cancerous. Please go see a doctor!” read the message.
Hamilton himself took this very seriously and immediately made it a point to show it to a doctor. As it turns out, it was cancer after all.
Beyond the sport
Upon being tested, Hamilton discovered that it was a Type-2 malignant melanoma. This was actually a type of skin cancer, and being detected early saved his life.
Undoubtedly, Brian Hamilton was more than thankful. “She took me out of a slow fire,” said Brian.
Hamilton immediately took to Twitter to find her, claiming she was his hero.
The biggest win tonight 💙 pic.twitter.com/6w0LGTcg9E
— Vancouver #Canucks (@Canucks) January 2, 2022
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“To this woman, I am trying to find, you changed my life, and now I want to find you to say THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH!” posted Hamilton.
And indeed she was. Popovici went far and beyond the game by doing something like this. Hamilton’s family is also equally thankful to her for saving his life.
“This entire experience has been so rare,” Popovici said.
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Popovici will forever cherish this story, where she saved a man’s life. Surely, it is a reminder of how important fans are to the game, for the game, and for those who play it.
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