Preventing skin cancer

If you have had a skin cancer removed in the past, you are at higher than average risk of getting another one. So you really do need to be extra careful.

Sunburn is painful. That is one good reason to try to prevent it. An increased future risk of skin cancer is another. Sunburn can double your risk of skin cancer. You should keep out of the sun when it is at its most intense. You should never use a sun bed. Remember to

• Spend time in the shade between 11 and 3
• Make sure you never burn
• Aim to cover up with a t-shirt, hat and sunglasses
• Remember to take extra care with children
• Then use factor 30+ sunscreen

The SunSmart website has lots of information about protecting you and your children.

It is best to wear long sleeves and long trousers if you are going to be out in hot sun in the middle of the day. The time it is most important to cover up is between 11am and 3pm. This is when the sun is at its most intense. If you are out, sit in the shade.

Wear a hat with a brim to protect both your face and the back of your neck. Babies and children should always wear brimmed hats in the sun. Baseball caps may look smart, but they leave the back of the neck and ears completely exposed. Much better is the 'foreign legion' type, with a cloth flap that covers the back of the neck. These are now widely available for babies and young children.

Don't forget to protect your eyes. Wear good quality, wrap-around sunglasses. Wrap arounds stop the sun from getting in at the sides. Buy these for children too - toy sunglasses can do more harm than good.

If you are in or near water, be aware of the reflection of the sun from the surface of the water. You are much more likely to burn and should cover up or use a complete sun block.

The amount of protection you get from your clothes varies depending on the type of material. The closer the weave of the fabric, the more likely it is to keep the sun off. Thin, loose weave fabrics such as cheesecloth give very little protection. Close weave cotton (T shirt material), gives quite good protection.

In the UK, manufacturers of clothing (particularly children's clothing) are beginning to put sun protection factor labels in their clothes. The higher the number, the more protection the clothing will give. Wet fabric can stretch and lose most of its ability to protect from the sun. There are now sunsuits available to give children and adults greater protection on the beach.

This is becoming a subject of more and more debate. There are doctors and researchers who are beginning to think that sun creams could be harmful because they encourage people to stay out in the sunshine for longer. They think that the protection the creams give you against burning may not actually stop you increasing your risk of skin cancer by sitting in the sun. The only way to be absolutely sure of reducing your skin cancer risk is to keep out of the sun. And if you must get a tan, do it very gradually. This may cause less damage.

Cheap suncreams are just as good as expensive ones. They are all tested the same way and it is the SPF that matters most. Do check the 'use by' date. Most creams will last about 2 or 3 years - so it is OK to use last year's, but not a bottle from 5 years ago!

Sun creams have changed a lot in the past 15 years. There is a huge range and it can be difficult to know what to buy. You should choose one that says it protects against both UVA and UVB radiation from the sun. This may be labelled 'broad spectrum'.

Then you need to choose the right sun protection factor. We recommend at least factor 30. Don't assume that because you have put on suncream, you can stay out without burning. Keep an eye on your skin (and your children's skin) at all times. Children have thinner, more delicate skins than adults and are at higher risk of burning. It is best to use waterproof sun cream because it will wear off more slowly.

Firstly, you should put it on 30 minutes before you go in the sun. Then put it on again just before you go out. This gives your skin time to absorb the cream. For the same reason, put it on before moisturiser, make up or insect repellent. It must go on before anything else so it is next to your skin.

Sun creams rub off. Even if they say they are waterproof, they may come off when you are swimming. In order to get the best protection, you must re-apply them often - at least every two hours. And more frequently if it is washed, rubbed or sweated off.

You must apply suncreams thickly. Nearly everyone puts them on much too thinly and so they don't get as much protection as is specified on the bottle. They often get less than half the protection specified. It is difficult to tell you how much to use on a website, but as the Aussies say, slap it on. You should be able to see and spread it very easily. If it all disappears as soon as you start rubbing it on, you haven't used enough. Use golf ball sized dollops for small children.

If your whole family only uses one bottle throughout a 2 week holiday, you definitely aren't putting it on thickly enough. We know it's expensive, but if you aren't getting the protection you should, you are just wasting what you have spent. Better to buy more and put it on properly. As a fraction of your holiday cost, it really isn't very much.

Usually, the higher the SPF, the more the product costs. We recommend factor 30.  But for children or if you are very fair skinned, use the highest factor you can afford - and put lots on.

There are no laws to make manufacturers test sunscreens. But there are laws about what they can say about them. If they say a sunscreen has a particular SPF, it must have been tested, because the manufacturer has to be able to produce the evidence supporting its claim. If a company were to claim that their product had been tested when it hadn’t, they would be breaking the law. There is more information about the law on testing suncreams in our section of questions and answers on CancerHelp UK.

Babies and young children do have thinner, more delicate skin than adults. Because of this, their risk of getting sunburnt is much higher. The information under ‘ covering up in the sun’ will give you the main tips on how to protect babies and children in the sun. But there are other things to think about.

The links below will take you to more information on the Cancer Research UK website about children and being ‘SunSmart’. If you want to return to this page you will need to click on your back button or click on any CancerHelp UK logo on the Cancer Research UK website.

Schools can become more aware of protecting children by

• Developing their own school sun protection policy
• Including sun protection into the school curriculum
• Making sure they provide sufficient shade in the school grounds

Kids are often too busy running around to worry about looking after their skin. But as a parent you can make a real difference to the damage your children receive early in life. You can

• Find out why it is important for parents to protect their children's skin
• Read tips about how you can keep children safe from the sun

If you find any new abnormalities on the skin that don’t go away after 4 to 6 weeks or existing ones that are getting bigger you should get your GP to look at them. This is especially important if you are at a high risk of getting skin cancer or have had treatment for a previous skin cancer.

It is also important that you make a habit of checking your own skin. Do this every 6 to 8 weeks. Look at the page on symptoms and risk factors in this section of CancerHelp UK and make sure you know if you are risk and what to look out for.

If your GP is worried that it may be a skin cancer then they will refer you to a skin specialist. How quickly you will get a referral will depend on the type of skin cancer your GP thinks you may have. Depending on local NHS services you may be referred to a rapid access suspected skin cancer clinic. The Department of Health have written guidelines for GPs so they know when to refer someone with a suspected skin cancer to a specialist. You can look at these guidelines for seeing a specialist in this section of CancerHelp UK.

There are private walk in skin clinics in the UK. But before you pay for this type of service, do make sure you know exactly what method of screening they use and whether it is reliable. Check if those carrying out the screening are medically qualified - they often are not. If you want a skin lesion checked then it really is best to see your GP.