New research has revealed Australians are still not engaging with proactive preventative skin checks as part of their overall skin safety routine, despite less than 1 in 3 (30%) believing they are always vigilant in protecting themselves from skin cancer.
The research1, commissioned by leading Australian life insurer TAL as part of its annual national skin safety awareness program, TAL SpotChecker, found that 63% of Australians have not had a skin check in the last 12 months, while 30% have never had one.
That's despite less than 1 in 3 (30%) saying they almost always or often take steps to protect themselves from the sun during times of incidental sun exposure, and nearly 3 in 4 (74%) saying they would feel more confident in their protection against skin cancer knowing they've had a professional skin check.
According to Dr Priya Chagan, TAL's General Manager of Health Services, the research suggests Australians may be lulling themselves into a false sense of security when it comes to how sun safe they really are, with unprotected incidental sun exposure—such as driving when it's sunny or sitting near a window at work—a big factor.
TAL's research shows that two thirds (66%) of Australians agree that they get more unprotected sun exposure than they realise, yet only slightly over a third (38%) say they consider sun safety as part of their daily routine.
"With 2 in 3 Australians predicted to be diagnosed with some form of skin cancer by the age of 70, according to the Cancer Council of Australia2, these findings really highlight the important role that preventative skin checks play in an overall approach to skin safety," said Dr Chagan.
It's no surprise that we are being exposed to the sun regularly at times when we are not adequately protected, and yet the research also showed a growing proportion of people (23%) saying that they never self-check their skin, up from 19% in 2021.
"By embracing secondary prevention—specifically regular self-checking followed by professional skin checks where you have a concern—in addition to our usual sun safety precautions, we can ensure that where skin cancer does develop, it can be detected and treated as early as possible," said Dr Chagan.
To help increase Australians' understanding of the importance of preventative skin checks in an overall skin safety routine, TAL has launched its TAL SpotChecker campaign for the seventh year running, a national initiative designed to drive education and engagement around skin safety and help more Australians understand how to self-check their skin and access professional skin checks.
We need to remember that sun exposure occurs even when we're not aware of it, and the risk of developing skin cancer is present throughout the year, so we need to be aware of taking preventative measures at all times.
"But we also know that the start of summer can be a powerful time to engage people around the importance of skin checks within their overall skin safety, and through TAL SpotChecker we are aiming to help Australians be more skin safe all year round," Dr Chagan concluded.
TAL SpotChecker launched at Manly Beach on 3rd and 4th December 2022, offering free skin checks to the Australian community. TAL has delivered more than 4,500 free professional skin checks across the country from 2016-2019 as part of TAL SpotChecker.
Visit TAL SpotChecker for more information, resources and to book a skin check at your local GP.
1. The survey was conducted by Edentify Pty Ltd on behalf of TAL, in October 2022, with a nationally representative sample of 1,500 respondents in Australia aged 18-65+ years old
2. Cancer Council of Australia
