Skin Cancer (Hansard, 8 July 2004)

§ Lord Warner:

Cancer Research UK has been commissioned by the United Kingdom health departments to provide the SunSmart skin cancer prevention campaign for the next three years.

The importance of seeking advice from health professionals on skin changes and the appearance of lesions is stressed in our key messages of the campaign—the SMART code, which is used in all campaign strategies:

Stay in the shade between 11-3

Make sure you never burn

Always cover up

Remember to take extra care with children

Then use factor 15 + sunscreen

Also report mole changes or unusual skin growths promptly to your doctor.

These messages are widely seen on our range of posters, leaflets, press and PR activities, and through partnerships with our corporate partners. These materials have been sent in various forms to every nursery, primary and secondary school, health promotion units, primary care and Sure-Start coordinators in the UK. As an indication of the scale of this distribution, in 2004, over 175,000 posters and over 2 million postcard-sized message cards have been printed for active distribution.

In the first phase of the campaign, we are aiming to raise awareness of our key messages to all people, with particular emphasis on parents and carers of children. At every opportunity we emphasise the increased risk for people with fair skin, many moles, a history of sunburn and/or a history of skin cancer in the family. We will then increase the focus on teenagers who exhibit high-risk sun seeking behaviour.

110WA

We are working closely with the Tanning Industry to promote our key messages to at-risk groups of sunbed users, and encouraging people to seek early health professional opinion on any suspect moles.

Lord Henley asked Her Majesty's Government:

What action they will take to facilitate early diagnosis of skin cancers among high risk groups. [HL3564]

§ Lord Warner:

The Department of Health has issued Referral Guidelines for Suspected Cancer to assist general practitioners in determining those patients who need to be referred urgently to see a specialist within two weeks. The guidance addresses skin cancers. The referral guidelines are currently being reviewed by the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) and the updated guidelines are due to be published in March 2005.

The Department of Health and Welsh Assembly government have also commissioned NICE to produce service guidance for skin tumours including melanoma. This guidance is due for publication in April 2005 and will address areas such as diagnosis, treatment and follow up.

In addition, United Kingdom health departments have commissioned Cancer Research UK to provide the SunSmart skin cancer prevention campaign for the next three years.

The SunSmart campaign includes:

40,000 posters designed to assist general practitioners and practice nurses in the identification of suspicious skin lesions. The poster has now been distributed to all UK doctors' surgeries.

A series of health information leaflets for surgeries, for distribution to patients. These include Malignant Melanoma—be a mole watcher for life and Skin cancer—how to be SunSmart and reduce your risk.

Working with health professionals to encourage regional "Mole Watch" clinics where health professionals offer a free screening service in public areas.

Through these strategies, we are encouraging health professionals to take an opportunistic approach to checking patients' moles when they attend surgery and encouraging the public to check their moles and seek professional opinion for early diagnosis of suspect lesions.