Page 4561 - Week 15 - Wednesday, 20 November 1991
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Sun damaged skin surfaces are the prime location for infection associated with skin cancer, although some skin cancers are induced by exposure to some substances which are a hazard to workers in industry. Men are more at risk than women, especially those over 45. Although melanoma can occur at any age, it is rarer amongst young people. If detected early, a melanoma can be cured. The message for young people, therefore, is that prevention is better than cure because damage to the skin by overexposure to the sun often occurs early in life.
In Canberra, where we have longer hours of sunlight than most Australian cities and our higher altitude exposes us to greater concentration of ultraviolet radiation from the sun, 50 new cases of melanoma are detected annually. There are eight melanoma-related deaths each year.
A startling aspect of the incidence of melanoma is that indoor workers seem to be more at risk than those who work out of doors. This is probably due to the intermittent exposure that indoor workers experience. The standard advice to wear a shirt, a hat and a good quality sunscreen is the best protection for everybody.
Because childhood exposure to ultraviolet radiation from the sun is a key factor in contracting skin cancer, including melanoma, the Government encourages school policies that emphasise that children should wear hats in playgrounds. The cost of all treatments for skin cancers in Australia is in the order of $100m to $400m each year, let alone, of course, the human costs in suffering.
The ACT Cancer Society has received significant support from the Government for its SunSmart campaign through the ACT health information fund. Some members of the Assembly had the privilege of being involved in last year's promotion in Garema Place, where a beach volleyball demonstration was played out. The society has been involved in a variety of sponsorships of sporting events aimed at encouraging Canberrans to be sun smart.
Grants have been made to the Australia Day Sports Committee, Walking for Pleasure, ACT Tennis Association - women's tennis championships, Veterans Branch - ACT Tennis Association, ACT Volleyball Association, ACT Yachting Team, ACT Cricket Association, ACT Women's Cricket Association, ACT Little Athletics and, of course, the Canberra Festival. A total of $216,261 was given to those groups. The society has developed some innovative ideas to bring this important issue to the public's attention.
In support of the Cancer Society's campaign, brochures and pamphlets have been widely distributed among ACT Government employees. These will reinforce the message provided to our outdoor workers in previous campaigns and make government office workers aware that they too need to spot the difference.
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