The 2025 Spot on Award for Dedication to Changing Australia’s Skin Cancer Landscape

Congratulations to Professor Richard Scolyer AO who was awarded the Spot on Award 2025. The Award recognises outstanding commitment changing Australia’s skin cancer landscape. The winner is carefully selected by the MSCAN Board.

The Award was presented by the Health Minister, the Hon. Mark Butler MP, at the Start of Summer BBQ with the Parliamentary Friends of Melanoma and Skin Cancer Awareness.

Melanoma and skin cancer is a major public health issue, claiming the lives of more than 2,000 Australians every year and costing the healthcare system over $2.47 billion a year.  We have the highest incidence of skin cancer in the world.

This year’s Spot on Award for Dedication to Changing Australia’s Skin Cancer Landscape is awarded to a clinician / researcher whose work has made a significant contribution in the melanoma field. The recipient is an internationally recognised researcher, with more than 1,000 publications, including in journals such as Nature, New England Journal of Medicine and the Lancet.

The recipient was named an Officer of Order of Australia in 2021 for distinguished service to medicine. In addition to making pathology cool, this individual was also the joint 2024 Australian of the Year. He can now proudly add a Spot on Award to the trophy cabinet.

The 2025 Spot on Award for Dedication to changing Australia’s skin cancer landscape is Professor Richard Scolyer AO.

Accepting the Award on Richard’s behalf were his two children, Emily and Matthew.

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