Steve Irons (Swan, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

On behalf of the Standing Committee on Health, I present the committee's report entitled Skin cancer in Australia: our national cancer, together with the minutes of the proceedings.

Ordered that the report be made a parliamentary paper.

Skin cancer is often referred to as Australia's 'national cancer' as Australia has the highest rate of skin cancer in the world, with 2 in 3 Australians expected to be diagnosed with skin cancer before the age of 70. Yet 95 to 99 per cent of all skin cancers are preventable.

Since the iconic Slip! Slop! Slap! campaign of the 1980s, primary prevention campaigns have promoted the use of sunscreen, protective clothing and limiting the skin's exposure to the sun. Statistics show that primary skin protection campaigns are working and I commend all those who made previous campaigns possible.

The committee heard that there is still progress to be made to embed sun-wise behaviours in some sectors of the Australian population. Two notable examples are the outdoor workforce and young Australians, which, although aware of the risk of skin cancer, have not translated this awareness into behavioural change. To encourage behavioural change, the committee has recommended specific strategies be developed to better educate the outdoor workforce and young Australians at high schools on how to be sun wise.

Early diagnosis is critical for survival rates for skin cancer. Australia engages in population-based screening programs for breast, cervical, and bowel cancers, but relies on opportunistic screening for skin cancer. The committee therefore recommended that information about skin cancer checks be included as part of the notification process for bowel cancer, as well as for the health assessments for people aged 75 years and over—the latter a high category risk group.

The inquiry also highlighted the debate on how best to provide diagnosis and treatment services for skin cancer, whether through referrals to dermatologists or through skin cancer clinics. Skin cancer clinics have developed in response to the increased demand for skin checks, long waiting times to see dermatologists, as well as cost, distance and time constraints.

The committee found that greater assurance should be provided to the public that skin cancer clinics are staffed by GPs with a high level of relevant skills and experience. To achieve this, the committee recommended skin cancer clinics be properly accredited and staffed by a minimum number of suitably qualified and experienced staff including dermatologists.

Indeed, despite the central role of GPs in diagnosing and treating skin cancer, the committee was concerned that only 2 hours of an undergraduate medical degree is dedicated to dermatology. The committee therefore recommended that the dermatology component of undergraduate medical degrees be expanded. Treatment and management of skin cancer involves any number of clinicians and specialists as well as a range of psychosocial and non-medical support services. For patients, navigating the multitude of clinicians and specialists can add to an already challenging and uncertain time in their lives. This is where multidisciplinary patient management becomes particularly important. Taking the value of multidisciplinary management into consideration the committee recommended that these services be adopted nationally. While Australia has earned a global reputation for its medical research, particularly in the area of cancer research, it is vital that Australia continue to lead global research in this area.

Although an overall increase in the incidence of skin cancer in Australia's ageing population is likely, current trends indicate that mortality rates are likely to decrease. Australia has made great advances in preventing and treating skin cancers, but there is always more that can be done.

Referring back to the mention of the two hours of undergraduate training, we also heard in the evidence that doctors are likely to have two weeks of cardiac arrest or heart training and they might only have five instances of dealing with a heart attack in their whole time as a GP, whereas they get two hours of undergraduate training on dermatology and they might have a melanoma experience once every year. So there is a good reason to increase the undergraduate hours.

In closing, I thank the organisations and government agencies who contributed to this inquiry and the individuals who generously spoke about their experiences with skin cancer and seeking treatment. I also thank the committee members. I see the member for Gellibrand here, who came in as the deputy chair halfway through the inquiry, took over for the previous member and did a fantastic job. His support was appreciated. So the contribution by the committee members has been fantastic, and their participation to the inquiry is also appreciated.

I would also like to thank the secretariat, who have put the report together and done a fantastic job supporting the members of the committee. I commend the report to the House.

See this speech in context