La Roche-Posay Challenges Canadians To 'Become a Skin Checker' for Melanoma Awareness Month

La Roche-Posay is on a mission to get one million Canadians to participate and encourage early skin cancer detection

TORONTO, May 2, 2016 /CNW/ - Today is Melanoma Monday. In honor of the day and to launch Melanoma Awareness Month, La Roche-Posay has teamed up with dermatologists across the country to continue the fight against skin cancer. La Roche-Posay is expanding on its inaugural 'Become a Skin Checker' campaign last year to offer more free mole checks across the country, including two Skin Checker events in Toronto and Montreal, and 50 Skin Checker Clinics. The goal is to have one million Canadians participate in the company's initiative by visiting clinics or downloading and sharing the guide online.

Become a Skin Checker was launched in 2015 to raise awareness of skin cancer and to educate consumers about how they can protect themselves and their loved ones. Interestingly, 6 out of 10 Canadiansⁱ say they care more about the health of a loved one than their own, so the Become a Skin Checker initiative is using that insight to ask Canadians to play an active role in protecting friends and family by learning how to detect suspicious moles.  Melanoma is one of the fastest-growing cancers in Canada, affecting both men and women at an alarming rate.  

"As summer approaches and more people will have their skin exposed to harmful UV rays, we want to remind Canadians about the importance of skin protection," said Josée Bordeleau, Medical Relations Lead, La Roche-Posay. "We truly believe that sharing this information can help us save lives. Our goal is engage Canadians to help us promote early detection, whether it's bringing loved ones to a clinic or encouraging them to understand skin cancer prevention."

La Roche-Posay will be holding Become a Skin Checker events in Toronto on May 2 and in Montreal on May 12. In addition, the company is hosting 50 Skin Checker Clinics across the country, open mid-June through the end of July. At each clinic Canadians will be offered free mole checks, along with information on La Roche-Posay's ABCDEs of moles. Each letter corresponds to an aspect of moles you should pay attention to, including: asymmetry, border, colour, diameter and evolution.

Starting May 15, Canadians can sign up to reserve a spot at various La Roche-Posay Skin Checker Clinics across the country by visiting: http://skinchecker.ca.

La Roche-Posay offers free mole screenings in more than 25 countries worldwide, with 200,000 patients examined and 1,600 cancerous lesions diagnosed since 1998. Last year, La Roche-Posay provided 513 free mole checks to Canadians. The company is expanding services this year to provide access to free mole checking for more Canadians across the country.

Tips for sun safety:

• Avoid exposing yourself to the sun between the hours of 12pm and 4pm
• Opt for shade rather than direct exposure
• Reapply sunscreen every two hours
• Reduce children's sun exposure as much as possible because their skin is much more sensitive than adults' skin. Clothes (hats, t-shirts and sunglasses) are still the best protection against UV rays

In 2015, an estimated 6,800 Canadians were diagnosed with melanoma, an easily preventable but potentially deadly disease. Melanoma is the third most common form of cancer in Canadian women between the ages of 15‐29 but according to the Canadian Dermatology Association (CDA), 90 per cent of skin cancer can be cured if detected in time.ⁱⁱ

ABOUT LA ROCHE-POSAY
La Roche-Posay is a division of L'Oréal Canada, a wholly-owned subsidiary of L'Oréal Group, the largest cosmetics company in the world. Headquartered in Montreal, L'Oréal Canada had sales of $1.07 billion in 2014 and employs more than 1,200 people. The company's prestigious portfolio of 35 brands encompasses all aspects of beauty.

Through the La Roche-Posay Foundation, under the aegis of the Fondation de France, the brand has been actively supporting research in the clinical, biological and pharmacological fields of dermatology as well as supporting and encouraging generous initiatives from dermatologists.

ⁱ Canadian Cancer Society.(2015). Canadian cancer statistics 2015, Special topic: Predictions of the future burden of cancer in Canada. Retrieved from Canadian Cancer Society website: http://www.cancer.ca/~/media/cancer.ca/CW/cancer%20information/cancer%20101/Canadian%20cancer%20statistics/Canadian-Cancer-Statistics-2015-EN.pdf?la=en
ⁱⁱ http://www.dermatology.ca/skin-hair-nails/skin/skin-cancer/malignant-melanoma/

SOURCE La Roche-Posay

Image with caption: "The La Roche-Posay Become a Skin Checker campaign encourages early skin cancer detection by learning the ABCDEs of moles. (CNW Group/La Roche-Posay)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20160502_C5852_PHOTO_EN_679315.jpg

Image with caption: "Applying a broad spectrum sunscreen with an SPF of 30 or greater, like Anthelios SPF60 Ultra-fluid lotion, to exposed skin can help protect skin from burns and sun damage to reduce the risk of skin cancer. (CNW Group/La Roche-Posay)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20160502_C5852_PHOTO_EN_679306.jpg

Stella Karami, The Colony Project on behalf of La Roche-Posay, T: [phone], E: [email protected]