Having spent much of her childhood in the sun as a competitive swimmer, federal Senator Penny Allman-Payne’s skin cancer diagnosis was not surprising, but it was a wake up call. 

During the federal election campaign last year, Ms Allman-Payne had a basal cell carcinoma removed from her nose.

It is not the most aggressive type of skin cancer and has a good prognosis when caught early, but her doctor told her it was a sign there could be further sun damage to her face.

During the parliamentary winter break, she underwent preventative topical chemotherapy to try and remove any other lurking cancer cells.

“I grew up in Far North Queensland and was a competitive swimmer,” Ms Allman-Payne said.

“My family has a history of skin cancer. My mum had melanoma.”

The senator, only in her early 50s, had always been vigilant with her skin checks, which is why it was caught early.

More than 2,000 people in Australia die from skin cancer each year, and two in three Australians will be diagnosed with some form of skin cancer in their lifetime. 

Success in Slip Slop Slap 

Cancer Council Queensland research director Joanne Aitkin said that while Australia still had the highest rate of skin cancer in the world, its rate of melanomas, the most serious form of skin cancer, was declining for people born after 1980. 

She said this was particularly true for Queensland, which had the highest rates of melanoma in Australia. 

But a huge increase in skin cancers is forecast among the Australian population in the next 20-30 years as people age.

“Across the whole Queensland population, the rate of melanoma diagnosis has been gradually increasing by approximately 0.7 per cent each year for the past 20 years, from approximately 66 out of every 100,000 people in 2001 to 76 out of every 100,000 in 2020,” Ms Aitkin said.

Skin Cancer College Australasia chief executive Lynette Hunt said all types of skin cancer, including the less aggressive basal cell carcinomas, needed to be taken seriously. 

“Other forms of skin cancer can kill you if not treated and can be extremely disfiguring,” she said. 

Cumulative exposure the real danger

In Ms Allman-Payne’s case, she believes the time spent outside was a huge contributing factor to her cancer diagnosis, and a motivating factor in further treatment.

But Australia’s high rate of skin cancer is not just due to people spending a lot of time consciously outside.

“People who mainly work indoors become a little bit complacent about the danger and tend to only take precautions when they’re consciously going outside,” Ms Hunt said.

“It’s going out to hang the clothes on the line, take the bins out, walk the dog, water the garden — the incidental occasions of exposure.” 

She said it was also important to note that topical chemotherapy did not work for melanoma, but was effective for basal cell carcinoma and as a preventative measure.

Despite having a severe reaction to the treatment, Ms Allman-Payne said she had no regrets.

“There’s no time you feel more vulnerable than when your health is going a bit pear-shaped,” she said.

“You won’t be seeing my outside without my 50+ on,” she said. 

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