Malta will be joining the rest of Europe in this year’s Euro-Melanoma Day campaign on Monday.

The campaign is being locally coordinated by the Maltese Association of Dermatology and Venereology and the Department of Dermatology, in collaboration with the Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Department,

Melanoma skin cancer, linked to sun exposure, is by far the commonest skin disease-related cause of death worldwide, and its increase has been progressively rising in recent decades.

The two main objectives of the Euro-melanoma awareness campaign are to promote:

• Prevention, or to reduce the risk of development of melanoma through sun protection, particularly in high risk-individuals, starting from childhood
• Early detection and treatment of melanoma, as this considerably influences the survival rate.

People with changing moles or suspicious pigmented scars are this week being urged to call the Dermatology Department at Boffa Hospital, to set up an appointment for melanoma screening on Monday.

Appointments can be set up by calling 22987105 or 22987153 and are on a first come first serve basis.

A video - Emma's story -  which is the focus of this year's campaign can be seen above.