Jody Brown was 27 years old when doctors found a melanoma on her hip.
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The suspicious dot was removed surgically.
But ten years later, pain in her groin saw her return to her doctors.
The news wasn’t good.
Scans showed a melanoma had spread to a lymph node.
Not wanting to take any risks, her doctors removed it alongside about 15 other nodes.
Years - and a string of flair-ups - later, the Barooga local has been cancer free since 2022.
In Melbourne, Mrs Brown continues to get skin checks at the Peter Mac clinic, where she also receives regular treatment.
Mrs Brown said there needs to be more accessibility to skin checks for people living in rural areas like Cobram - Barooga.
“Could you imagine if we could organise, once every six months or something like that, in rural areas, where you’ve got a dermatologist on board to come out to rural areas and do skin checks?” she said.
“That would save lives.”
As such, Mrs Brown welcomed news that the Lions V District Cancer Foundation’s Skin Check & Awareness Unit was coming to Tocumwal this month.
But weeks before the free service was set to arrive in town on March 18, the high demand for the service was on display.
The unit’s 100 appointments were booked up in less than a week.
Tocumwal Lions Club secretary Carol Kennedy said the demand for the unit’s service was not surprising.
“People in these more remote areas don’t have access to this sort of service. You’ve got to go to Shepparton or Melbourne, and that costs money,” she said.
The unit, which is run by trained volunteers, travels all around Victoria and southern NSW every year.
Lions V District Cancer Foundation Chair Bruce Hudgson said it was common for the skin check unit to book out quickly.
“The popularity of it is such that people want us to come back again. But we’re serving the whole area of northern Victoria and southern NSW,” he said.
“People would love to have us in town for a week, but we’re trying to be equitable and get around as much of the state as we can.
Mr Hudgson said cost was a key reason why people in rural areas delay having their skin checked.
“One case was at St Arnaud, where the chief executive of the hospital told me they (skin check patients) would have to go to Ballarat, Horsham or Bendigo, and it would cost them $640.
“In some cases, that’s food on the table for the family.”
At one Shepparton clinic, a basic skin check, including a dermatologist's assessment, will cost at least $200, and about $400 for a full-body mole mapping - before any rebates.
General practitioners and specialists can provide skin checks for their patients as part of a Medicare Benefit Schedule general attendance consultation.
Should their clinic elect to bulk-bill, GPs may claim a Medicare rebate of $42.85, or $82.90 for a longer consultation.
Specialists may also claim a Medicare rebate for appointments, which can attract a rebate of $98.95.
With an operating cost of at least $100,000 per year, the unit has been completely community-funded, without government support, since its genesis in 2021.
Mr Hudgson said any government support would make a huge difference.
“We’d like to run all week, but we just can’t afford it,” he said.
“We know it’s hard to estimate the total saving you’re making to the health system. But I would say we’re helping it save millions by early detection.”
Meanwhile, demand for its services has the foundation’s unit booked out until the end of this year.
In a statement, Federal Minister for Health Mark Butler said while screening is an important early detection mechanism, skin cancer is the most preventable of all common cancers.
“It is important that Australians take steps to reduce their risk of skin cancer every day by practising the 5 S’s – slip, slop, slap, seek and slide,” he said.
“The Albanese Government has invested $10.3 million over four years to accelerate development of a roadmap for a national targeted skin cancer screening program for all Australians, including those residing in rural and regional areas.
“This investment builds on the work already under way gathering evidence for skin cancer screening, and Melanoma Institute Australia will draw on this expertise and knowledge, bringing Australia one step closer to a targeted skin cancer screening program.
“Preventing cancer, detecting and treating it earlier, will save heartache and pain for countless individuals and families, and also take pressure off our hospitals and wider health system.
“Australians can receive a skin check as part of a consultation with their general practitioner or specialist, which is supported through a range of Medicare items.”
In Yarrawonga, Lions Club member Debbie Van Corler was unable to sleep on Saturday, March 8.
The reason?
From 12.03am onwards, her phone kept buzzing as scores of people requested a booking for the skin check unit, which operated in Yarrawonga on Saturday, March 15 and Sunday, March 16.
Even with an extra 22 appointments, all slots were booked by lunchtime that day.
Even since a skin clinic in Mulwala opened last year, Mrs Van Corler said there is a definite need for greater access to affordable checks in her community.
“If we had another 100-odd appointments, we’d have filled them,” she said.
“We’re doing the best we can do with what we’ve got.”
Cadet journalist