In a recent survey, the Irish Cancer Society found that almost one in four (23%) of skin cancer deaths in Ireland are from the construction, outdoor and farming industries. Skin cancer is the most common cancer in Ireland, with over 11,000 new cases diagnosed in 2015. The National Cancer Registry of Ireland (NCRI) expects this number to double by 2040.
The Construction Industry Federation has partnered with the Irish Cancer Society to publish a leaflet to help construction workers understand the risks.
You can view the leaflet here.
The main cause of skin cancer is harmful ultra-violet (UV) rays from the sun. UV rays can be harmful from April to September, from 11 am until 3 pm. UV rays can be present on both sunny as well as cool and cloudy days.
Whether it is sunny or cloudy, it is important to protect your skin from April to September as you cannot see or feel the UV rays, which cause damage to skin. Up to 90% of UV rays can get through light cloud, and it doesn’t have to be a warm and sunny day for dangerous UV rays to be present. Even on cool days, UV levels can be high enough to damage skin.
For more information, please visit the Irish Cancer Society website. 
 

Did you know:

Nine out of 10 cases are caused by the sun’s ultraviolet (UV) rays and can be prevented.
Up to 90% of UV rays can pass through light clouds, so it’s important to take care on cloudy Irish days too.
A tan or sunburn may go away but the damage to your skin remains. It builds up every year and can lead to skin cancer later in life.