Tim Watts (Gellibrand, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I am pleased to have the opportunity to speak on the Standing Committee on Health report on the inquiry into skin cancer in Australia. As the committee chair has just stated, skin cancer is often referred to as Australia's 'national cancer'. Australia has the highest incidence of skin cancer in the world, perhaps unsurprisingly. Current statistics indicate that two in three Australians will be diagnosed with skin cancer before the age of 70. It very much is a cancer that will touch many of us in this room.

More Australians will die from this disease this year than will die from transport accidents. Early diagnosis of skin cancer can be critical for survival. If melanoma is found early and if it is removed completely then the chance of cure is high; but, if melanoma spreads to other organs and tissues, if it has reached stage 3 or 4 and is classified as advanced melanoma, the prognosis is much less favourable. If someone is diagnosed with advanced melanoma, the average time for survival is just eight to nine months. This is why public awareness of this type of skin cancer in particular is so important. Catching it early can save your life.

Skin cancer costs Australians hundreds of millions of dollars a year, yet in almost all cases skin cancer is preventable. Thankfully, statistics show that primary prevention campaigns in Australia are working. We all remember the great success of the Slip! Slop! Slap! campaign. People are wearing sunscreen and protective clothing and are limiting their exposure to damaging ultraviolet rays. People are getting new moles checked and are looking out for existing moles that have changed shape. We have also developed a number of life-saving treatments.

Australia has made great advances in preventing and treating skin cancers, but there is certainly room for improvement, and that is why this is inquiry is important. The inquiry highlighted that there is still progress to be made in some pockets of society in particular. We still need to raise awareness of sun smart behaviours, particularly with the outdoor workforce and with young Australians at the secondary school level—those who have grown up after the Slip Slop Slap! campaign. Not all Australians are being sun smart. The committee recommends that the Department of Education and Training work with the states and territories to encourage secondary schools to adopt SunSmart policies. Targeting young people is important because reducing exposure to UV rays at a younger age reduces the risk of skin cancer later in life.

The inquiry also highlighted that skin cancer is a particular problem for Australians in rural and remote areas, particularly those that work outdoors. People in these areas are at greater risk of skin cancer yet are less likely to have access to specialist dermatologists. The committee recommends the use of new and emerging technologies in the diagnosis of skin cancer to overcome some of these hurdles; for example, the use of teledermatology allows rural doctors to submit digital images of affected skin and history to an experienced dermatologist. The dermatologist can then report back with diagnosis and treatment options. The committee further recommends that the Department of Health work with state and territory counterparts to establish a virtual platform that will allow for multidisciplinary treatment of skin cancer for patients in regional and remote areas.

The committee also recommends that teledermatology be included on the Medicare Benefits Scheme. It is important for Australia to continue to lead global research into skin cancer. We need to work toward discovering new and improved treatments. Skin cancer can be treated by a range of therapies including surgery, radiation therapy, biological therapy, chemotherapy and immunotherapy. However, when the most deadly form of skin cancer, advanced melanoma, reaches stage 3 or 4 treatment is relatively ineffective at present. Fortunately, new treatments are being developed that boost the immune system and that target the genes that are involved in melanoma occurrence and growth.

New technologies have been developed such as the dermatoscope, which is key to the early detection of skin cancers. Accuracy of diagnosis is particularly important in the screening of skin cancer. The dermatoscope is a technological instrument that can be used to examine suspicious skin lesions. Significant improvements in diagnostic accuracy result from the use of a dermatoscope. The committee recommends improved and expanded education and training in dermatology for medical students, as well as providing training for nurses in rural areas. Raising awareness of skin cancer to increase prevention and improving treatments is critical to saving the lives of Australians.

I, too, would like to thank the many organisations and private submitters who gave their time to assist the committee in its inquiry. I would also like to thank the committee members. As the chair indicated, I joined this committee when it was already well underway, and they welcomed me with open arms. So I pass on my personal thanks in that respect. As always, when talking about a new committee report, we should thank the committee secretariat who worked diligently throughout this process and assisted us to get to where we are tonight.

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