Ken O’Dowd, Federal Member for Flynn, is supporting an innovative campaign aimed at reducing Australia’s high skin cancer rates.
The Know Your Own Skin campaign, created by leading experts, urges individuals to examine their skin—the body’s largest organ—at the beginning of each season for signs of sun damage and to consult their local GP for a skin check on their next visit.
Routine skin examinations can detect changes early, potentially saving lives. Clinical data indicates that one in two Australians will develop a sun spot (solar keratoses) on their skin, which could evolve into skin cancer if not identified and treated promptly. By the age of 70, two out of three Australians will have been diagnosed with skin cancer.
In Queensland, despite being sunburnt in the past, 54% of residents did not have a skin check by a healthcare professional in the last year, which is better than the national average. However, across Australia, 64% of people did not have their skin checked in the past year.
To make self skin checking simple and easy, an interactive free iPhone app has been developed. The app – available at www.knowyourownskin.com – contains:
- eight simple steps to check your own skin;
- what to look for (beyond just moles);
- an interactive photo bank;
- reminder service to track changes that may occur over time
Dr Andrew Miller, a Canberra based Consultant Dermatologist who assisted with checking the skin of the members of Parliament on Tuesday says “Sun damage can take years or even decades to show up on the skin and it is essential people, especially those over the age
of 40, check for signs of sun damage on a regular basis.”
Mr O’Dowd said “All Australians are at risk of developing sun damage related skin conditions, due to our past sunbathing habits and the inevitable exposure we all get to the sun’s UV rays”. “It is a concern that so few people in Flynn have had their skin checked in the past 12 months.
“We should all – myself included – conduct a simple skin check at the start of each season,” Mr O’Dowd said. “A regular self-skin check using the free tools that you can find at www.knowyourownskin.com can usually pick up signs of potential sun damage,” Dr Miller advises.
Dr Shobhan Manoharan a consultant Dermatologist from Queensland who also provided skin checks to the MPs said “People should visit their family doctor for a regular full body skin check as part of a routine medical check-up. This will allow an early diagnosis of any areas of damage and then recommend appropriate treatment.”
