On a mission to prevent skin cancer, La Roche-Posay, broke a world record by offering free screenings to the public in a special pop-up event on Melanoma Monday.
La Roche-Posay wanted to do more than simply tell their audience about the importance of sun protection to prevent cancer. Instead, they brought free screenings to the streets of New York.
With a staggering total of 1,988 screenings on 1 May 2023, La Roche-Posay, in partnership with medical group Schweiger Dermatology, snapped up the Guinness World Records title for most skin cancer screenings in 8 hours.
To break the record, La Roche-Posay set up a huge tent with capacity for 32 individual screening spaces, where more than 50 medical providers and volunteers from the Schweiger Dermatology Group performed the tests.
The official attempt started at 9:57 a.m., and there was a steady flow of participants throughout the day - both people who had signed up in advance and locals and tourists grabbing their chance to take part.
Skin cancer is the abnormal growth of skin cells and is one of the most common types of cancer in the world, with millions of cases diagnosed each year. The detection and treatment of skin cancer has become an important focus for dermatologists and skincare brands around the world.
Michael Empric, Guinness World Records Official Adjudicator, was on site to verify and announce the results of the attempt.
The attempt took place outside L’Oreal’s headquarters in Hudson Yards Public Square & Gardens, a new and hip area on the west side of Manhattan, New York. It was part of La Roche-Posay’s 2023 Save Our Skin campaign, where the brand informs the public about the dangers of UV radiation and provides access to annual public skin cancer screenings.
The date of the event also coincided with Melanoma Monday, which is marked on the first Monday of May to remind people of the importance of timely skin cancer screenings.
“I am so proud to work on a brand that is committed to skin cancer support, including prevention, and want to thank my hard-working team at La Roche-Posay USA for executing and hosting such an amazing and impactful event. La Roche-Posay has a long history of supporting skin check events through our annual SOS - Save Our Skin campaign. Events like this help provide access for someone who may not visit a dermatologist regularly or even be aware that they need to get their moles checked annually.”- Penelope Giraud, General Manager, La Roche-Posay USA.
According to the American Academy of Dermatology the main causes of skin cancer are the sun’s harmful ultraviolet (UV) rays, and the use of indoor tanning equipment.
The good news is that when detected early, dermatologists can treat skin cancer with high probabilities of eliminating it entirely.
That was the main motivation for La Roche-Posay when setting up the record-breaking event. Their vision was to give thousands of people the opportunity to receive free skin cancer screenings from medical professionals.
Melanoma is the deadliest type of skin cancer. According to the American Academy of Dermatology nearly 20 Americans die from melanoma every day.
Screenings followed a standard “ABCDE” methodology for screening moles and body spots for potential malignancy. The term stands for asymmetry, border, color, diameter and evolving, which are the characteristics of skin damage that professionals look for when diagnosing and classifying melanomas.
The record to beat was 963, which was achieved by The Polka Dot Mama Melanoma Foundation (USA) in Durham, North Carolina, USA, on 18 May 2019.
Congratulations, La Roche-Posay. You are now Officially Amazing!
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