A free public sunscreen dispenser is now making sunscreen more accessible in several communities across Canada as part of a pilot project to fight skin cancer.
The project was launched in 2022 by the Save Your Skin Foundation and medical student siblings Samuel and Karen Farag. Last year the municipalities of Riverview, N.B., Summerside, P.E.I., Brooks, Alta., and New Westminster, B.C., installed sunscreen dispensers and this year Grand Bay-Westfield, N.B., joined the list.
“Anytime we can remove barriers to people using sunscreen and hopefully preventing skin cancer that’s a very good thing,” said Grand Bay-Westfield mayor Brittany Merrifield.
Acting like a hand sanitizer dispenser, the bright yellow units are easily spotted dispensing sunscreen free of chemical filters, common allergens and toxic ingredients to be used by anyone who needs it.
Save Your Skin Foundation is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to the fight against non-melanoma skin cancers as well as melanoma and ocular melanoma through education, advocacy and awareness initiatives across Canada.
The pilot project that is expected to expand into at least 60 communities across the country this summer is being offered for free to municipalities wishing to take part.
“We need to do this everywhere. Education, awareness and prevention – all of that is key to skin cancer. We know that we get it generally from UV … if we catch it early it is preventable and curable,” said Kathleen Barnard, the founder of Save You Skin Foundation.
Barnard founded the Save Your Skin Foundation in 2006 after being diagnosed with Stage 4 metastatic melanoma. Her prognosis was grim, but she survived and now feels it is her mission to spread the word about skin cancer prevention.
“We know that skin cancer is on the rise. We know that there’s more diagnosis of skin cancer than all other cancers combined,” she said.
The dispensers are automatic and touchless, and provide free Health Canada-approved sunscreen for anyone who needs it. The dispensers contain SPF 30 mineral sunscreen, a zinc-oxide-based sunscreen free from chemical filters, common allergens and toxic ingredients such as oxybenzone, avobenzone, retinyl palminate, PEG, perfume, and sodium lauryl sulphate.
“Studies show that young people still aren’t taking sun safety seriously despite incidence rates rising every year,” says Barnard. “Skin cancer can be deadly, but it is also highly preventable.”