An Irish doctor has warned that three bad sunburns under the age of 20 can double your chances of developing melanoma later in life.
Dr Catriona McCarthy outlined the symptoms of skin cancer to be aware of and how to protect your skin in the Irish climate.
She said: "One of the main things to realise is how common skin cancer is in Ireland. So it is something that we do need to watch out for. Particularly the more serious form of skin cancer which is called melanoma.
"That's the one that can, unfortunately, spread to the rest of your body. That's the one where sometimes we hear people talking about a funny looking mole or a change in your skin.
"So for all types of skin cancer, we would say any new lump or bump that you're worried about that looks different to other ones or something you haven't seen before, you're better off getting it checked out."
Dr McCarthy added that there are also some signs that are particularly concerning.
She said: "Particularly concerning ones to watch out for is almost like a new mole… some people would call it maybe the ugly duckling. Maybe a freckle that doesn't look like the other ones.
"Something that is changing in your skin, that's sort of another red flag. So if it's changing in shape, if it looks kind of irregular around the outside, if it's itchy or bleeding, any of those things are worth checking and showing your GP because there's good survival from melanoma if you catch it early."
Dr McCarthy emphasised that although Ireland can be dull and cloudy, skin protection is still deed, especially from April to September as more radiation penetrates through the clouds.
She said: "Sometimes our summers don't feel like summers, but really the amount of radiation that's hitting your skin between April and September, just where we are in the northern hemisphere, there's enough radiation hitting our skin in the middle of the day to cause damage to our DNA.
"It's really important to protect our skin the whole time for those six months."
She added: "The amount of radiation from the sun increases in the middle of the day and then gets lower again obviously before the sun goes down. It's that window, especially between 11am and 3pm, that you have to take extra precaution.
"So we would say minding your skin between April and September 11-3 the whole time is a good thing to do even on a cloudy day. Radiation reduces a little bit, but radiation can still get through light cloud and hit your skin.
"And then the other thing is people can be caught out thinking it's a cloudy day, I won't do anything to protect my skin today, and then there's a break in the clouds, and it's a nice afternoon, and you're caught out, and your skin is exposed.
"So we'd say in terms of how you protect your skin, then it would be the healthy Ireland 5 s are what you follow."
These are as listed below.
Slip on clothing that cover your skin, long sleeves, collards shirts
Slop on sunscreen on exposed areas using factor 50+ for children
Slap on a wide-brimmed hat
Seek shade – especially if outdoors between 11am and 3pm
Slide on sunglasses to protect your eyes
Dr McCarthy also warned that taking measures to protect your skin is vitally important for those under the age of 20.
She said: "In general, obviously, like a lot of risk factors, the more you're exposed to something, the higher your risk of developing a form of cancer.
"With skin cancer, we know that it's disproportionate in terms of the exposure you get in the first ten years of your life.
"That sort of radiation exposure to your skin early in life kind of increases your risk even more in terms of your lifetime risk.
"Your skin is more delicate and vulnerable when it's younger, so it just makes it particularly important for children to have their skin protected.
"There is evidence that a bad sunburn, particularly a blistering sunburn, the really rotten ones, not just a bit of red, but if you have three episodes of a bad sunburn before the age of 20, that would double your risk of getting melanomas or a serious form of skin cancer later in life, maybe up to four times the risk.
"So that shows just how significant bad sunburn in young people is in terms of their lifetime risk."
More information can be found on the HSE's SunSmart campaign here.
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