La Roche-Posay presents My Skin Check to help skin cancer awareness

La Roche-Posay sponsored a public lecture on skin cancer awareness and prevention in Dublin last week, and as this is a topic I'm always interested in, I jumped to register for the event.

Presentations from a dermatologist and a representative from the Irish Cancer Society gave a broad overview on the risk factors for developing skin cancer, the signs you should be checking for yourself and most importantly, how to protect against it.

One of the most interesting parts of the talk for me was the presentation by a representative from skincare company La Roche-Posay of their new website, My Skin Check, which helps users to evaluate their personal risk of developing skin cancer, describes how to check your skin and advises on how to protect yourself from the sun. Users can even create a personal account on the site, where any moles or marks you may be concerned about can be recorded and monitored for changes.

The Irish Cancer Society recently published a report showing that not only have new cases of skin cancer in Ireland risen by 36% over the last 10 years, but there has also been a 75% increase in females under 50 years presenting with malignant melanoma. Sobering news, and a timely reminder that we all need to be aware of how we can protect ourselves against the disease.