Irish Cancer Society calls on the public to take part in skin cancer prevention research

The Irish Cancer Society is calling on individuals and organisations to take part in new research around skin cancer prevention. Skin cancer is the most common cancer in Ireland and the number of new cases is expected to rise sharply over the next 25 years. The Irish Cancer Society is working with the National Cancer Control Programme to develop the first Skin Cancer Prevention Action Plan for Ireland.  The research, which takes the form of a survey, will inform the development of the Action Plan. It will incorporate the views of the individuals and groups across several different sectors including health care professionals, government and non-government agencies, community groups as well as media and bloggers. The aim of the research is to find out what the various sectors are doing in relation to skin cancer prevention and to establish what could be done to engage them on this issue.  Rosemary Scott, Cancer Prevention Information Development Officer at the Irish Cancer Society said: “We are really interested in engaging various different organisations and groups in this research which will play a vital role in how we approach skin cancer prevention in the future. Skin cancer can be prevented in nine out of ten cases by protecting the skin from over exposure to UV rays. We want to learn more from organisations and groups nationwide about what we can do to elevate the important message about skin cancer prevention, how we can engage and educate relevant audiences and work to create an environment that supports people to be SunSmart.” The survey will take the user approximately 10 minutes to complete and will be live from the 9 November to 11 December.Visit www.cancer.ie/skinsurvey to take part.