THE advent of the package holiday and the fashion for tans has seen skin cancer rates soar since the 1970s, according to Cancer Research UK.
Around 18 people in every 100,000 in Scotland are diagnosed with malignant melanoma annually compared to just four in 100,000 40 years ago, new figures from the charity show.
On average 1200 people are now developing the most serious form of skin cancer every year - compared with about 190 in the mid-1970s.
The figures were revealed as the charity launches a new campaign to encourage people to look after themselves in the sunshine.
A charity spokesman said: "The rise is partly down to an explosion in package holidays to Europe dating from the late 1960s and the increasing popularity of the must-have tan, often achieved only after damaging sunburn.
"The boom in sunbed use has also helped to fuel the increase in skin cancer, and better detection methods may also have contributed to the increase in the number of people diagnosed."
Malignant melanoma is now the fifth most common cancer in Scotland.
Mother-of-three Caroline Begg, from Glasgow, offered her support to the campaign after fighting malignant melanoma.
The receptionist used sunbeds before being diagnosed eight years ago aged 26. A mole on her back prompted her to go to the doctor and she said she is lucky the cancer was picked up early.
Ms Begg, 34, said: "I have a large scar on my back but that's nothing compared with what could have happened. I could have ended up not being able to have children. I could have died.
"I was aware that the sun could age your skin but didn't even think about skin cancer. I'm fair skinned with freckles and moles so I'm actually in a high risk category."
The mother of 13-week-old Nicholas, two-year-old Isabelle and four-year-old Oliver said: "I make sure my kids don't stay out in the sun too long, always use sun cream and I try to put special sun suits on the children in the summer too."
The Cancer Research UK and Nivea Sun campaign advises people to stay out of the sun when it is at its strongest, usually between 11am and 3pm.
It recommends wearing a wide-brimmed hat, a T-shirt and sunglasses when in the sun and protecting exposed skin with sunscreen with a minimum of factor 15.
Chloe Cowan, a Cancer Research UK nurse based at the Beatson Cancer Centre in Glasgow, said: "Everyone loves getting out and about and enjoying the summer sun. It's essential to take care not to burn. Sunburn is a clear sign that the DNA in your skin cells has been damaged and, over time, this can lead to skin cancer.
"When the sun is strong, pop on a T-shirt, spend some time in the shade and use a sunscreen with at least SPF15 and good UVA protection."
Lisa Adams, Cancer Research UK spokeswoman for Scotland, said: "We know overexposure to UV rays from the sun or sunbeds is the main cause of skin cancer. This means, in many cases, the disease can be prevented, so it's essential to get into good sun safety habits, whether at home or abroad.
"Sadly more and more people in Scotland are being diagnosed with malignant melanoma each year. But the good news is that survival is amongst the highest for any cancer. More than eight in 10 people will now survive the disease."
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article