The Member for Mallee and Shadow Assistant Minister for Regional Health will undergo surgery next week for a potential skin cancer detected on her face, demonstrating the importance of skin cancer checks for all ages during global Melanoma and Skin Cancer Awareness Month.

“More than 2 in 3 Australians will be diagnosed with skin cancer in their lifetime and around 2,000 Australians die annually from the disease, even though skin cancer is one of the most common but preventable cancers. Men are also about 2 times more likely to die from skin cancer than women,” Dr Webster said.

“My concern as the Member for Mallee is that the latest data from the Cancer Atlas shows that while skin cancer detections in my hometown of Mildura are low at 25 per cent below the national average, our excess deaths are 34 per cent above the national average.  I used this data writing to Minister Butler last June advocating for Mildura to receive a state-of-the-art Vectra scanning machine, using 92 cameras to produce a 3D body image to detect and monitor potential lesions.”

“Globally this Friday 24 May is #DontFryDay and while it might not be the northern summer here, it is a timely reminder to get checked because Australian deaths from melanoma have been trending down, thanks to early detection. I want to ensure Mallee residents see the benefit of that downward trend, given our closest scanner is Bendigo, 4 hours away. The Vectra scanner potentially also offers hope across the tri-state Victoria – New South Wales – South Australia border region.”

“We also need the dermatologists not only recruited but ultimately trained from medical school through to post-graduate study in the Sunraysia region so we can detect and prevent needless deaths from skin cancer.”

The majority of those diagnosed with melanoma are in the 60-79 age bracket, according to Australian Institute of Health and Welfare data, with Australia having the highest

age-standardised rate of melanoma in the world. Australia has the equal 6th highest melanoma mortality rate, with deaths about 2 times higher than Canada, US or the UK.

There are 15 Vectra machines deployed in Queensland, NSW and Victoria as part of an Australian Centre of Excellence in Melanoma and Imaging & Diagnosis trial, each costing about $10 million. Victoria has Vectra scanners at Bendigo Health, Bass Coast Hospital Wonthaggi, and the Alfred Hospital and Skin Health Institute, both in Melbourne.