1. The Health Effects of Sunbeds and how to advise your clients
With thanks to:
Sarah Bird
Health Improvement Project Officer (Skin Cancer), Public Health Directorate, Exeter
and
Lorraine Wilkinson
Cancer awareness and screening project assistant
Plymouth PCT
Who kindly prepared and delivered this presentation.
Provide each person or team with 3 cards. Mark each card with an “A” , “B”, or “C”

2. Skin cancer – what’s the issue? Test your knowledge…
Participants to

3. Plymouth has the… Highest rate of malignant melanoma in the country?
b) The 4th highest rate of malignant melanoma in the country?
c) The 20th highest rate of malignant melanoma in the country?
Answer: a)

4. Skin cancer is most common in…
Teenagers?
b) People aged 20-50?
c) People over 50?
Answer is c)

5. For 15-34 year olds, skin cancer is the…
a) Rarest cancer?
b) 2nd most common cancer?
c) Tenth most common cancer?
Answer is b)

6. Which statement is true?
Skin cancer is not preventable
b) 50% of skin cancers are preventable
c) 80% of skin cancers are preventable
Answer is c)

7. Avoid burning
Getting a painful sunburn just once every two years can triple the risk of malignant melanoma
Insert an image of sunburn again.

8. Know your skin
People with fair skin that burns easily, lots of freckles, moles, a history of sunburn and family/personal history of skin cancer are more at risk and need to take extra care

9. Seek shade
In the UK, the sun is strongest between 11am and 3pm. Abroad, the sun is strongest when your shadow is shorter than your height – seek shade during this time.

10. Cover up
Protect your skin with clothing such as sunglasses, hat and t-shirt
…or not so stylish, as long as it does the job.
Hat may be stylish…
Sunglasses

11. Sunscreen – know how to use it
Use at least SPF15
Use a ‘broad-spectrum’ (UVA and UVB protection) sunscreen with a 4* rating
Reapply regularly and generously
Most sunscreens expire after 1-2 years so make sure yours is in date
Cheaper sunscreens can be just as effective as the expensive ones
Don’t rely on sunscreen as your only form of protection
No sunscreen gives 100% protection so don’t be tempted to stay out longer

12. Avoid binge-tanning

13. Government advice is to avoid using sunbeds

14. Based on World Health Organization (WHO) and Department of Health advice, you should not use UV tanning equipment if you:
have fair, sensitive skin that burns easily or tans slowly or poorly;
have a history of sunburn, particularly in childhood;
have a large number of freckles and/or red hair;
have a large number of moles;
are taking medicines or using creams that sensitise the skin to sunlight;
have a medical condition that is worsened by sunlight;
or anyone in your family has had skin cancer in the past;
already have extensive skin damage due to sunlight.
The Sunbeds (Regulation) Act, effective from April 2011, makes it illegal to let under 18s use UV tanning equipment in salons

15. Skin type
It’s important to be able to identify skin type and for clients to be aware of their own skin types, as this affects their risk in the sun and how carefully they need to take care of their skin.

16. Type I - Often burns, rarely tans
Type I - Often burns, rarely tans. Tends to have freckles, red or fair hair, and blue or green eyes.
Type II - Usually burns, sometimes tans. Tends to have light hair, and blue or brown eyes.
Type III - Sometimes burns, usually tans. Tends to have brown hair and eyes.
Type IV - Rarely burns, often tans. Tends to have dark brown eyes and hair.
Type V - Naturally black-brown skin. Often has dark brown eyes and hair.
Type VI - Naturally black-brown skin. Usually has black-brown eyes and hair.
Note that people often think they have darker skin than they actually have – they should be thinking about their natural skin type WITHOUT make-up, fake tan or a summer tan from being out in the sun. Also the descriptions above are of how their skin would react WITHOUT any type of skin protection on.
It is also possible to be a ‘celtic’ skin type – people with dark hair but very pale skin – these are also Type 1 skin types.

17. Sunbeds are estimated to cause around 100 deaths from melanoma every year in the UK
Using sunbeds for the first time before the age of 35 increases the risk of developing melanoma by 75%
Sunbeds may be mostly UVA, but UVA has now been proven to contribute to skin cancer as well as UVB
WHO has now classified sunbeds as ‘definitely carcinogenic’ – same category as tobacco and asbestos
At most, a sunbed tan is the equivalent of sunscreen with an SPF of 2-4 – not enough to protect you
You don’t need to use a sunbed to get enough vitamin D

18. Spotting skin cancer early
Asymmetry The two halves of your mole do not look the same.
Border The edges of your mole are irregular, blurred or jagged.
Colour The colour of your mole is uneven, with more than one shade.
Diameter Your mole is wider than 6mm in diameter (the size of a pencil eraser).

20. Other signs of skin cancer
a new growth or sore that won't heal
a spot, mole or sore that itches or hurts
a mole or growth that bleeds, crusts or scabs

21. Purple patches = where skin is thinner/dehydrated
White patches = healthy skin, less exposed, e.g. eyelids, under eyebrows, under nose
Purple patches = where skin is thinner/dehydrated
‘The UV facial scanner is a simple device used in the beauty industry to show up various skin conditions, including dehydration, flaky skin and oily pores. It works by UVA black lamp technology showing up the deeper layers of the skin that are not normally visible to the naked eye, but which will become apparent over time. Importantly, it also shows freckles, pigmentation and sun damage, which means it can be used to show a client that they have a fair skin type and need to take extra care of their skin for that reason, or that they have already done damage to their skin and need to take extra care in the future. The machine does not diagnose skin cancer.
The scanner has been used successfully in FE colleges across Devon and Cornwall, to read more about the project see here.’
Freckles/pigmentation = sign of skin type but also of sun exposure
Nose is often more damaged
White specks = dust/dead skin cells
Fluorescent pores = oily

22. Gemma Merna (Hollyoaks)
Gemma Merna used sunbeds when she was younger, but since seeing her face under the scanner she’s given them up and looks after her skin really carefully.