Free test for skin cancer today

A FREE skin cancer screening is available at 300 points around France today for national skin cancer awareness day.

The test does not require an appointment and takes between five and 10 minutes.

The one-day event has been running since 1998. Some 260,000 people have been screened so far - and 2,000 cases of skin cancer detected at an early stage and treated.

According to the Syndicat National des Dermatologues, about 80,000 new cases of skin cancer are diagnosed every year. The number of cases has doubled every 10 years since the Second World War.

The union wants to raise awareness of the dangers of the sun - not just for frequent sunbathers but also gardeners, golfers and anyone who works outdoors.

You can find your nearest screening centre on this website or by calling 3113 (free from a landline).