Screening for skin cancer in different ages and skin types

How does skin cancer detection vary in different age groups and among patients with different skin types? In this podcast, Paul Elmslie (Founder & CEO, HealthCert Education and National Skin Cancer Centres) speaks with Dr Kerry Summerscales (National Skin Cancer Centres) about screening for skin cancer in different ages and skin types.

Dr Kerry Summerscales is a doctor at CQ Skin Cancer Centre in Mackay, Queensland, who diagnoses and treats skin cancer every day. In this podcast, she talks about her personal experiences with screening patients of all ages and skin types for skin malignancies and offers her practical advice on how not to miss a melanoma.

Dr Summerscales speaks about how she approaches patients of different age groups – from children to adults to the elderly – when screening for skin cancer, including the different risk factors that each of these population groups may hold. She says that skin checks can be an ideal opportunity to teach children about body autonomy and to help them to understand their own skin from a young age.

She talks about checking for skin cancers in young people, including teenagers and those in their 20s, with a particular focus on melanoma, as this is the most common cancer in Australians aged 15 to 39 – with real patient stories. She discusses how she determines a patient’s individual skin cancer risk and sunburn history, and her systematic approach for conducting skin cancer checks across the entire skin surface.

Dr Summerscales discusses how she helps patients of all ages to feel comfortable and at ease during the skin exam and some of the questions she asks her patients to get a better understanding of their skin history, skin cancer risk, and what’s brought them into her clinic that day.

She also talks about skin cancer screening in older Australians aged 65+ who are at highest risk of non-melanoma skin cancers.