CASES of killer cancer have hit record highs in England, experts have warned.
Skin cancer diagnoses have increased dramatically, with one in five people affected in their lifetime.
Experts think it is a combination of an aging population and that more people seek out sunshine on foreign holidays.
It could also be linked to an improvement in spotting and diagnosing cancers.
There were 224,000 skin cancers recorded in England in 2019 and more than 1.4 million between 2013 and 2019, according to figures analysed by NHS Digital and the British Association of Dermatologists.
It found a 26 per cent rise in recorded cases, from 177,677 in 2013 to 224,092 in 2019.
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Dr Tanya Bleiker, president of the British Association of Dermatologists, said: “We are fast approaching a quarter of a million skin cancer cases a year in England.
“To put this in context, we estimate that one in five people will have a skin cancer in their lifetime.
“While more needs to be done to prevent skin cancer in this country, we also need to increase the resources available to tackle the rise in cases.
“Currently, it is estimated that there is the equivalent of 508 full-time consultant dermatologists working in England.
“If these doctors and their colleagues are to meet the challenge of managing a quarter of million skin cancer cases a year, then they will need more resources and better workforce planning.”
A breakdown of the data shows there were 15,332 melanomas in 2019, up from 12,885 in 2013.
Melanoma is less common than some other types of skin cancer, but can be more deadly and more likely to spread.
There were also 47,977 cutaneous squamous cell carcinomas in 2019, up from 34,672 in 2013.
Squamous cell carcinoma is the second most common form of skin cancer and, when caught early, is mostly curable.
