| This year, more than 8,000 men and women in the UK are likely to be diagnosed with malignant melanoma, the most dangerous form of skin cancer* and many could lose their lives – in 2003 it claimed the lives of 1,817 UK people**.
Marie Curie Cancer Care has teamed up with NatWest and Lloydspharmacy to raise awareness of the dangers of sun exposure and the importance of using an SPF of 15 or above. The ‘Sun Safety – Don’t Get Caught Out Campaign’ also aims to raise funds for pioneering skin cancer research being undertaken at the Marie Curie Research Institute. The campaign is driven through NatWest’s sponsorship of the cricket – the NatWest International Twenty20s and the NatWest Pro40. At these matches, sun safety booths provide free sun cream donated by Lloydspharmacy. NatWest has already raised close to £ 15,000 for Marie Curie Cancer Care in the space of just two Twenty20 games and three One Day Internationals. Paul Collingwood, captain of the one-day squad for the series against the West Indies, is supporting the campaign. “I’m a huge fan of the work of Marie Curie Cancer Care. Their nurses do a fantastic job and their skin cancer research is world-class. Being outside for long periods of time means I have to be sun safe – it’s so important not to get caught out.” Stewart Vaughan (28), captain of Dorking FC in Surrey, died in April from skin cancer. He had been married to his partner Heidi Cooke (27) of Purley, for just five weeks. Stewart was cared for at home by the Marie Curie Community Hospice Team and later received nursing and medical support at the Marie Curie unit of the North Downs Hospital. Heidi is now supporting the ‘Sun Safety – Don’t Get Caught Out Campaign’ and is urging everyone – young and old, sports fans and others – to wear sun cream. “People aren’t aware of the dangers of the sun and therefore don’t protect themselves against it. I want to make sure everyone knows that sun exposure comes with the risk of skin cancer. I think people assume it will never happen to them but it happened to my Stewart.” There are some simple steps to being sun safe this summer – it’s easy to follow Marie Curie Cancer Care’s sun CARE code: Cover up by wearing a hat, t-shirt and sunglasses Avoid the sun between the hours of 11am and 3pm when it is at its most dangerous Remember to use a minimum of SPF 15 sunscreen, apply generously and reapply every two hours. Ensure that children are adequately protected, because their skin is more delicate and prone to sunburn. Nick Mortimer, Superintendent Pharmacist at Lloydspharmacy said: “It is an established fact that excessive exposure to the sun will damage your skin, prematurely age it and double your risk of developing skin cancer later in life. When you or your family plan to spend time outside over the summer, you should always protect your skin. That’s why Lloydspharmacy is supporting the ‘Sun Safety – Don’t Get Caught Out’ campaign – to encourage everybody to wear high factor sun lotion while they are out enjoying themselves.” For more information please visit www.mariecurie.org.uk/sunsafety. |
Welcome!Log into your account
