Observing sun-protective behaviors at outdoor sporting events

Researchers watching the crowds at the Townsville V8 supercar events said many people are sun smarts – but women are wearing the wrong hats.

dr Simone Harrison is Senior Research Fellow at James Cook University’s College of Public Health & Tropical Medicine. She said the incidence of skin cancer in Australia and New Zealand is much higher than in other countries with predominantly white populations such as the US, UK and Canada.

“The burden on Australia’s healthcare system is enormous, with the direct healthcare costs borne by the government for all patients newly diagnosed with melanoma accounting for A$397.9 million and A$426.2 million for (generally non-life-threatening) keratinocyte carcinoma in 2021 , making skin cancer the most expensive of all cancers nationwide,” said Dr. Harrison.

She said about 95% of melanomas could be prevented by avoiding excessive exposure to ultraviolet radiation, but despite sun protection campaigns implemented in Australia since the 1980s, skin cancer incidence has continued to rise in all but the youngest groups.

The researchers observed a total of 1,337 racegoers, most of whom had lightly pigmented skin, at the 2009 and 2013 Townsville Supercars events, and counted those wearing hats and sun-care clothing. The results are published in the journal Photochemistry and Photobiology.

“Over 70% of people wore a hat, but sun protection hat use (wide-brimmed/bucket/Legionnaires) fell from 29.2% to 18.6% between the two events, primarily because sun protection hat use halved (from 28 .7% to 14.0%) among women, who were less likely than men to wear a hat at all,” said Dr. Harrison.

She said relatively few people wore sunscreen sleeves (three-quarter length or full length), but their use more than doubled between 2009 (10.5%) and 2013 (22.5%).

Researchers found that at the 2013 event, more than 82% of men wore sunglasses to protect their eyes, but just over 69% of women.

dr Harrison said the results underscore the need for continued efforts in primary prevention of skin cancer through sun protection and given Australians’ love of sport and the outdoors, with a particular focus on outdoor sports.

“Without continued action to improve prevention and early detection, it is estimated that between 2022 and 2030 an additional 205,000 Australians will be diagnosed with melanoma, of whom 14,000 will die, at a cost of A$8.7 billion and even the loss of 136,000 years of life before.” when you consider those affected by keratinocyte carcinoma,” said Dr. Harrison.