Melanoma survivor Matt Kean and a team of cyclists completed a 1000km bike ride around the Riverina from Albury to Lake Cargelligo over eight days. The eight-day journey saw the team pass through both Corowa and Yarrawonga spreading the message of melanoma awareness to students and the public.
Mr Kean was first diagnosed with stage three melanoma in 2016, which was later moved to stage four.
He underwent two years of immunotherapy and has since been cancer-free.
Mr Kean’s main message as he passed through towns in the Riverina region was “prevention is better than a cure”.
“We want to continue to raise awareness of the disease that has affected my life, and my family's, and so many members of the Riverina community,” he said.
Statistics show that Australia has the highest melanoma rates in the world and is often referred to as ‘Australia’s national cancer’.
Mr Kean also stressed that 98 per cent of melanoma was due to the sun.
“This disease is preventable and if we can put those steps in place with the five S’s of Sun Safety, our nation will be so much better for it.”
The five steps of sun safety: slip on covering clothing, slop on SPF 30, slap on a hat, seek shade and slide on some sunglasses.
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