TOO MUCH FUN IN THE SUN?

It’s been a scorcher of a Kiwi summer, with lots of sun, days at the beach, and BBQs. While we all love to have fun in the sun, it’s really easy to overdo it. The New Zealand sun is really harsh, and even with the best of intentions, it can be hard to avoid tan lines and sunburn.

Unfortunately, our love of the sun can be deadly. We have one of the highest melanoma incidence rates in the world, with two in three New Zealanders developing skin cancer over their lifetime. The good news is that most skin cancers can be avoided by being SunSmart and getting any suspicious spots checked out early.

Just like blood pressure, mammograms or a dental checkup, it’s important to monitor your skin’s health. As we get to the end of another summer, it’s time to tick off your skin check as well.

Skin cancer is more common the older you are. The risk is also higher in fair-skinned people, those who spend a lot of time outdoors (work or sport), have a family history of skin cancer or have had any episodes of bad sunburn as a child.

And if a spot has changed, becomes raised, is sore, itchy or scaly, or a new spot appears – get it checked by a professional. The sooner skin cancers are detected, the simpler the treatment and the more successful it is likely to be. The Molecheck team of skin cancer doctors use the latest dermoscopy techniques to view structures beneath the skin surface, so they can diagnose melanoma and other skin cancers at the very earliest possible stage, often before they can be seen with the naked eye. All Molecheck patients receive a thorough and comprehensive skin cancer and melanoma check. If anything crops up in the first consultation, the skin cancer doctors have the ability and confidence to diagnose lesions right there and then, and where appropriate, treat them on the spot.

molecheck.co.nz