How Often Should You Have a Skin Check in Queensland?

Health Hub · Skin cancer

Queensland has the highest rate of skin cancer in the world, and living on the Fraser Coast means a UV index of 3 or above almost every day of the year. One of the questions our doctors hear most often: how frequently is a professional skin check actually needed? The honest answer is that it depends on your skin, your history and your sun exposure. Here is how those factors change the picture.

There is no one-size-fits-all schedule

Australia has no formal national screening program for skin cancer. Instead, the recommended approach is risk-based: your GP assesses your individual risk factors and suggests a check frequency to suit. Factors that increase your risk include:

• ✓A personal or family history of melanoma or other skin cancer
• ✓Fair skin, red or fair hair, or skin that burns easily
• ✓A large number of moles, or moles that are unusual in shape or colour
• ✓Significant lifetime sun exposure, including outdoor work on the Fraser Coast
• ✓A history of sunburns, particularly in childhood
• ✓Use of solariums in the past
• ✓A weakened immune system, including from some medications

A general guide by risk level

As a starting point, and always subject to your own doctor’s advice:

Whatever your risk level, any new or changing spot is a reason to book promptly rather than wait for your next routine check.

Check your own skin between appointments

Cancer Council recommends getting to know your own skin and checking it regularly, including areas that rarely see the sun. Ask your GP how often to self-check based on your personal risk. The ABCDE guide (Asymmetry, Border, Colour, Diameter, Evolving) is a practical prompt for what to look for; our step-by-step guide to checking your own skin walks through it properly. Self-checks do not replace a professional examination. They make you the person most likely to notice a change worth showing your GP.

What happens at a professional skin check

A full body skin check at Main Street Medical Centre is a head-to-toe examination by a GP using a dermatoscope, a handheld instrument that magnifies and illuminates the skin so spots can be assessed in detail (our guide on what dermoscopy is explains how it works). Suspicious lesions can be photographed for digital dermoscopy monitoring, and if a spot needs further attention, biopsies and skin cancer surgery can be performed on site in our dedicated procedure rooms. Skin check consultations are bulk billed for eligible Medicare card holders, and our guide to what is bulk billed and what carries a fee sets out the full list.

Mole mapping for higher-risk patients

If you have many moles or a higher risk profile, your GP may suggest total body photography (mole mapping) with OptimaScan. The device photographs your entire skin surface in one session, creating a high-resolution record your GP can compare at future visits to help identify changes over time. Mole mapping is a private service ($49 for scans completed in 2026, then $99 from 1 January 2027; not claimable through Medicare). Whether it is clinically appropriate for you is a decision made with your GP. Not sure which suits you? See our guide to skin checks vs mole mapping.

Frequently asked questions

Not sure what the appointment itself involves? Read our step-by-step guide to what happens during a full skin check.

This article is general information and is not a substitute for individual medical advice.

External guidance checked 7 October 2026