Press Release
MP Encourages People To Be Sun Smart
Tom Clarke MP met with Cancer Research UK’s SunSmart team to learn about skin cancer and how to stay safe in the summer sun.
Cancer Research UK organised a special Molewatch Clinic, which was staffed by dermatologists and specialist skin cancer nurses, to promote skin cancer awareness and the importance of being SunSmart this summer.
Tom Clarke MP said: “It is important to be safe in the sun and to avoid burning. All types of sunburn can cause permanent and irreversible skin damage and can double your risk of skin cancer.
“I urge my constituents to speak to their GP if they have concerns about a particular mole, freckle or patch of skin that has changed over a period of weeks.”
The MP added:
Skin cancer is one of the most common cancers in the UK. The number of skin cancer cases is increasing year on year. The main risk factor for skin cancer is exposure to sunlight. Up to 90% of skin cancers could be prevented by being SunSmart. Over 75,000 new cases of skin cancer are registered each year in the UK. Some experts estimate the number of cases to be in excess of 100,000 as many cases are not reported. Each year over 1,800 people die from malignant melanoma. Cases of malignant melanoma have more than doubled over the past 20 years. Malignant melanoma is the second most common cancer for 20-39 year olds. Over the last 20 years, malignant melanoma incidence has increased faster than any other cancer. There are more skin cancer deaths in the UK than in Australia, even though Australia has more cases of the disease”.
A national survey for SunSmart - the UK’s national skin cancer prevention campaign commissioned by the UK Health Departments and run by Cancer Research UK - found that 30 per cent of 16-24 year olds said that they were certain to get sunburnt on their summer holiday. And a further 30 per cent said that they might get sunburnt.
The survey questioned 2000 men and women of all ages throughout Britain about their sunbathing habits. Overall more that a quarter of adults (27%) thought getting burnt was all part of getting a tan.
Rebecca Russell, Cancer Research UK’s SunSmart campaign manager, said: "Getting sunburnt increases the risk of skin cancer in general. But the kind of sunbathing binges that happen when people go to much hotter climates and bake on the beach is particularly dangerous”.
"This kind of short intense exposure to the sun, leading to burning, particularly increases the risk of malignant melanoma. And each year in Britain almost 2000 people die from this form of skin cancer."
Ms Russell added that it was particularly worrying that more than a quarter of people surveyed believed burning was all part of getting a tan. "Rates of melanoma are set to treble in the next thirty years unless there is a radical change of behaviour among holiday makers addicted to sunbathing."
To reduce the risk of skin cancer and enjoy being out in the sun, the SunSmart campaign encourages people to know their skin type and use the UV index to find out when they need to protect themselves. They should also follow the SunSmart key messages:
- Spend time in the shade between 11 am and 3 pm
- Make sure you never burn
- Aim to cover up with a t-shirt, hat and sunglasses
- Remember to take extra care with children
- Then use factor 15+ sunscreen