Australia has among the highest rates of skin cancer in the world, and South Australia’s UV levels make regular checking a sensible habit rather than an overcautious one. Most skin cancers are treatable when found early. The difficulty is that the early stages rarely look alarming.
A skin check is a systematic look at the whole skin surface by someone trained to know what matters. It takes about 20 minutes and it is the single most useful thing you can do about skin cancer risk.
What happens during a skin check
You undress to your underwear and the practitioner works methodically over the whole body in good light, using a dermatoscope, which is a magnifier with a polarised light source that shows structures below the surface.
Anything of interest is photographed and measured so it can be compared at your next visit. Change over time is often more telling than how a spot looks on any single day.
- Scalp, face, ears and neck, including behind the ears
- Torso, back and underarms
- Arms, hands and between the fingers
- Legs, feet and between the toes
- Nails, where pigmented streaks can matter
The areas people find awkward are usually the ones that get missed at home, which is much of the point of having someone else look.
How often you should have one
There is no single interval that suits everyone. Risk factors drive the schedule, and your practitioner will suggest one after seeing your skin and history.
| Risk profile | Commonly suggested interval |
|---|---|
| No particular risk factors | Every 2 years, with monthly self checks |
| Fair skin, freckling, burns easily | Annually |
| Many moles or atypical moles | Every 6 to 12 months |
| Family history of melanoma | Annually or more often |
| Previous skin cancer | Every 3 to 12 months as advised |
| Heavy sun exposure or outdoor work | Annually |
These are general patterns, not a prescription. Your own interval is set at your appointment.
What to look for between appointments
Self checking does not replace a professional look, but it is how most changes get noticed first. The usual prompt is the ABCDE pattern.
- Asymmetry, where one half does not match the other
- Border that is irregular, notched or blurred
- Colour that varies within the one spot, or is very dark
- Diameter larger than about 6mm, though smaller ones can matter
- Evolving, meaning any change in size, shape, colour or sensation
Evolution is the one that catches most cases. A spot that is changing warrants a look regardless of whether it fits the other letters.
Anything that bleeds, itches persistently, crusts and returns, or will not heal within a few weeks should be looked at promptly rather than at your next scheduled check.
What a skin check will not tell you
A check is a snapshot of the skin surface on the day. It is very good at what it does and it has limits worth understanding.
- It cannot predict what will appear next month, which is why intervals matter
- It does not diagnose. A suspicious spot needs a biopsy to be confirmed
- Very early changes can be genuinely difficult to distinguish, which is why photographs and comparison over time carry weight
- It covers skin, not internal disease
None of that argues against having one. It argues for having them at sensible intervals rather than once and never again.
Why early detection changes the outcome
Skin cancers begin in the upper layers of the skin. While they remain there, removal is a local procedure and the outlook is generally very good.
The concern with melanoma in particular is depth. Once it grows downward it gains access to lymphatic and blood vessels, and treatment becomes considerably more involved. The difference between those two situations can be a matter of months.
Non-melanoma cancers such as basal cell and squamous cell carcinoma behave less aggressively, but left alone they enlarge and can invade local tissue, which makes removal more disfiguring than it needed to be.
What happens if something is found
Most suspicious spots turn out to be harmless. Where there is doubt, the usual next step is a biopsy under local anaesthetic, which takes a small sample or removes the lesion entirely for testing.
Results generally take around a week. If treatment is needed, the approach depends on the type, size and location, and it is discussed with you before anything proceeds.
Waiting for a result is uncomfortable, and it helps to know that the great majority come back benign. Being asked to have something biopsied is a sign of thoroughness rather than an indication that something is wrong.
Where treatment is required, it is usually an in-clinic procedure under local anaesthetic. More involved cases are referred on, and we will tell you plainly if that is the right course rather than managing something we should not.
Where a lesion is benign but bothering you cosmetically, that is a separate conversation and can be handled through skin lesion removal at our Adelaide clinic.
Reducing your risk
Detection matters, but so does not accumulating more damage. South Australian UV is high enough for much of the year that daily protection is worth building into a habit.
- Broad spectrum SPF50+ daily, reapplied every two hours outdoors
- Shade during the middle of the day, particularly October through March
- Hat, sleeves and sunglasses rather than relying on sunscreen alone
- No solariums, which are banned commercially in Australia for good reason
- Check the daily UV index rather than judging by temperature
Damage accumulated decades ago still counts, which is why checking matters even if your habits have improved. Guidance on sun protection is published by healthdirect.
Cost and what to expect on the day
Two questions come up before most people book: what it costs, and whether it will be awkward. Current pricing is on our pricing page and is indicative, with your fee confirmed at the appointment.
On the awkwardness, it is a clinical examination and treated as one. You are gowned or in underwear, the room is private, and you can ask for anything to be skipped or explained as you go.
Mention up front if there is a particular spot worrying you. People often save it until the end, and it is more useful at the start where it can be examined properly and photographed.
Common questions
How long does a skin check take?
Usually around 20 minutes for a full body check. Longer if you have many moles being photographed and mapped for comparison.
Do I need a referral?
No referral is needed to book a skin check with us. You can arrange it directly.
Does it hurt?
The check itself is visual and nothing touches the skin beyond the dermatoscope resting against it. If a biopsy is needed, local anaesthetic is used.
Should I do anything to prepare?
Come without makeup or nail polish so the face and nails can be seen properly, and mention any spot you are specifically worried about at the start.
At what age should I start having checks?
Risk rises with cumulative exposure, so most adults benefit from a baseline check. Anyone with a family history, many moles or significant sun exposure should start earlier rather than later.
Who should not put it off
Some circumstances make a check more pressing than the general schedule suggests, and they are worth recognising in yourself.
- You have never had a full skin check and are over 40
- You worked outdoors, particularly in the decades before sun protection was standard practice on worksites
- Someone in your immediate family has had a melanoma
- You have had blistering sunburns, especially in childhood
- You take medication that suppresses the immune system
- There is a spot you have been watching and quietly worrying about
That last one is the most common reason people finally book, and usually the longest delayed. A spot you keep checking is a spot worth having someone else look at, and the reassurance of being told it is nothing is worth the appointment on its own.
The short version
A skin check is 20 minutes, needs no referral, and finds things while they are still small and local. How often you need one depends on your skin type, mole count and history.
You can read more about skin checks and mole checks at our Adelaide clinic, including what is examined and how mapping works.
If it has been more than a year, or there is a spot you keep looking at, that is reason enough to get checked. Book a skin check at our Kent Town clinic in Adelaide, or call the clinic on (08) 8239 0431.
