Australia rocked by sunscreen scandal

Like many Australians, Rach grew up “terrified of the sun” in the country with the highest rate of skin cancer in the world.

Her childhood was shaped by the infamous “no hat, no play” rule common in Australian schools, 1990s adverts warning that the sun would cause cancer, and tubes of sunscreen standing guard at every doorway in her house, CE Report quotes Kosova Press.

This turned the 34-year-old into someone who diligently reapplies sunscreen several times a day and rarely leaves home without a hat. So she was shocked when doctors found skin cancer on her nose during a check-up last November — something they said was unusual given her age and her strict sun-avoidance routine.

Although technically classified as a “low-grade” skin cancer — a basal cell carcinoma — it had to be surgically removed, leaving the Newcastle mother with a scar just below her eye.

“I was just confused and a little angry because I thought to myself, ‘Are you kidding me?’” Rach told the BBC, asking that her surname not be used. “I thought I’d done everything right and it still happened to me.”

Her anger grew when she learned that the sunscreen she had used for years was unreliable and, according to some tests, offered almost no protection from the sun.

An independent analysis by a respected consumer advocacy group revealed that some of the most popular and expensive sunscreens in Australia were not delivering the protection they claimed, sparking a national scandal.

There has been a strong backlash from customers, an investigation launched by the country’s medical regulator, many products pulled from shelves, and questions raised about sunscreen regulation worldwide.

The group had tested 20 sunscreens at an independent accredited Australian laboratory, finding that 16 of them failed to meet the SPF — or sun protection factor rating — listed on their packaging.

Australians have a complicated relationship with the sun: they love it, but they also fear it.

The country has the highest incidence of skin cancer in the world, with estimates suggesting that two in three Australians will face at least one case of skin cancer in their lifetime.