In an effort to change the grim picture painted by New Zealand’s melanoma statistics, Melanoma NZ’s annual awareness campaign ‘Get Spotted’– which runs from October 16–22 – aims to remind Kiwis to slip, slop, slap, and wrap, as well as educate about the importance of early detection.
According to Melanoma NZ chief executive Andrea Newland, New Zealand has the highest incidence rate of melanoma in the world – each year, more than 6000 Kiwis are diagnosed with melanoma and around 300 people will die from the skin cancer.
“In fact, more people in New Zealand die from skin cancer than on our roads,” Newland said.
“But the good news is that melanoma can be preventable, and if it is recognised and treated early enough, it is almost always curable.”
As noted by the Ministry for Environment, although a small amount of UV exposure throughout the year is vital for producing vitamin D, New Zealand’s comparatively cool summer temperatures encourage overexposure.
The Get Spotted campaign is directed at younger people and aims to teach them “good sun-smart habits from an early age”.
Schools, kindergartens, early childhood education centres, businesses, and individuals across the country are getting involved in the campaign in a number of different ways, including dressing up in spots, holding fundraisers, and sharing important messages about how to be ‘sun smart’ and regularly check your skin.
Busy Bees Greytown assistant manager Stephanie De Vos told the Times-Age the early childcare centre is taking part in the campaign and showing their support by educating kids about sun safety during their mat time, emphasising the importance of wearing sunhats and regularly applying sunblock.
“This is really encouraging because we know these children taking part are learning life-long great habits,” Newland said.
“Melanoma NZ is also providing all schools, kindergartens and ECEs that register for Get Spotted with free access to its online education course, to ensure their staff have the tools and knowledge they need for themselves, their families and for the children they teach,”
Melanoma NZ is also offering free skin cancer spot checks, as well as a self-skin check video and A-G guide of what to look for when checking your skin.
And to help encourage people to get behind the campaign, the organisation is running a competition with a Lidgard 49m² shade sail worth $20,000 up for grabs for the school, kindergarten, or early childhood centre that shares the most creative Get Spotted activity and tags Melanoma New Zealand on its social media account.
To learn more or register for Get Spotted, visit melanoma.org.nz/get-spotted.
The Sun Protection Alert via sunsmart.org.nz/ sun-protection-alert will tell you the time each day when you need to protect your skin and eyes.
