Michael Jackson’s world was turned upside down in the early 1990s after he was diagnosed with vitiligo – a depigmentation skin disease that creates light patches of skin.

‘Listen, I’m not trying to turn white… I have a rare skin disease,’ Michael, now 50, famously remarked after he was accused of turning his back on his African ancestry.

Now, as our amazing photographs show, it appears as if his eldest son Prince Michael, 12, has inherited vitiligo, with a noticeable discolouring of his right hand.

Leading Sydney dermatologist Richard Wittal says:

‘There seems to be a genetic or hereditary tendency to develop vitiligo. About 10 per cent of all sufferers have a family history of the condition. It can remain localised and stable indefinitely, or it may progress slowly or rapidly.

‘Factors that have been suggested that may precipitate the progression of the disease include emotional distress, physical illness, severe sunburn and pregnancy.’