Melanoma Canada's mole mobile will be in northern Ontario this weekend

Melanoma Canada is taking its 'mole mobile' to communities in northeastern Ontario, where anyone can get any moles or lesions examined by a dermatologist.

"We created the mole mobile in 2023. At that time it travelled across Ontario," said Melanoma Canada CEO Falyn Katz.

"In that year, it screened over 4,000 people and found over 700 suspicious lesions."

Katz said there are only 700 dermatologists in Canada, and most of them are in larger urban centres. That means it's especially challenging for people from smaller communities to see a dermatologist and catch skin cancer early.

According to Melanoma Canada, skin cancer cases have tripled over the last 30 years and they are the most common cancers diagnosed in the country. Last year more than 91,000 skin cancers were diagnosed across Canada.

Katz said the mole mobile functions like a walk-in clinic where people can be seen on a first-come basis.

Patients can ask for a spot check or for a head-to-toe screening.

"So the dermatologist is checking with a dermatoscope, which is a tool that a dermatologist uses to see deep beneath the layers of the skin," Katz said.

The mole mobile will be at Sudbury's Bell Park all day Saturday and parked outside the Canadian Tire on Pine Drive in Parry Sound on Sunday.