MASCED is a national accreditation programme developed by Skcin to harness the power of hair, health and beauty industry professionals who are uniquely placed to spot the early signs of skin cancer on their clients’ skin and provide trusted advice and signposting to promote early diagnosis, improve patient outcomes and save lives.
Skcin’s MASCED (Melanoma and Skin Cancer Early Detection) online training programme launched in 2018 to provide a cost-effective, nationally accessible solution to educate hair, health and beauty industry professionals on the prevention and early detection of skin cancer. Our mission is to create a growing army of accredited professionals nationwide who are educated and equipped to aid in the vital early detection of skin cancer across their client communities.
Skin cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in the UK & worldwide and early detection is vital. However, there is a glaring gap in education among individuals and across professional capacities, resulting in later stage diagnosis and poorer patient outcomes.
Hair, health and beauty industry professionals have regular observation of their clients’ skin – often in places not visible to the client themselves. They are therefore uniquely placed to detect changes or abnormalities that could indicate the early signs of skin cancer and to provide trusted advice and signposting to aid in the vital early diagnosis and treatment of the disease.
The objective of the programme is to educate, empower and equip hair, health and beauty industry professionals nationwide with the skills required to:
The MASCED training programme offers hair, health and beauty industry professionals the opportunity to become accredited and awarded certification for taking part in a three-step programme detailed below. The training has been reviewed by professional dermatologists and is officially recognised, supported and accredited by key industry bodies providing evidence of Continuing Professional Development.
Upon registration to the programme professionals are sent their printed welcome pack which includes their welcome letter, supportive resources and their MASCED guide. Professionals are required to study the guide provided before moving on to step 2 and encouraged to keep their guide in-salon for future reference.
Step 2 requires professionals to complete their accreditation e-course that reinforces the educational content provided in their guide. The course also provides professionals with potential scenarios to assist them in developing their knowledge and building confidence in identifying suspicious lesions, communicating concerns and appropriately signposting for clinical assessment.
Once the e-course has been completed, professionals are required to provide feedback of their experience. This enables us to monitor programme effectiveness, maintain best practice and provide evidence of completion and success.
Certificates are awarded upon completion of the e-course and the provision of feedback. The accreditation is valid for one year, with a renewal process in place enabling professionals to refresh, reinforce and develop their knowledge.
With the provision of the training and tools provided by the MASCED programme, on completion learners will be able to:
Registered professionals have access to a range of supportive resources to aid them in their unique capacity to extend vital awareness across their client communities.
Including a dedciated app, digital downloads, and printed resources to display in-salon/clinic, our range of bespoke resources support professionals in educating their clients on the prevention and early detection of skin cancer, empowering them to take charge of their skin health and surveillance.
With over 11,000 accredited professionals across the UK and internationally providing five star feedback and hundreds of reported cases of early detection, the MACSED training programme lives up to it’s strapline ‘Training Eyes to Save Lives’. We have showcased below just a handful of case studies that provide clear evidence of the programmes success and how industry professionals are fast becoming the first line of defence against the UK’s most common cancer.
“I’ve refrerred 8 clients to their GP / Dermatologist since completing your course. FIVE were skin cancers, THREE were melanoma. They wouldn’t have gone if I hadn’t encouraged them to go. All have been so grateful, your course has saved their lives!”
Erika Hodgkiss, Beauty Therapist, Kent.
“My client had been ignoring a lesion on her chest for some time and didn’t think it was anything to worry about. Following my advice she was diagnosed with BCC and during her examination / surgery TWO MELANOMA were spotted, diagnosed, successfully removed early and given the all clear”.
Lucy Dempster, Holistic Therapist, Cheshire.
“Soon after completing the course, I recognised a mole on the back of my leg that had changed. I was later diagnosed with melanoma and thankfully it was removed early. I feel very lucky that I took the time out to do this course and am so grateful to SKCIN for the MASCED training!”
Heidi Rudkin, Beauty Therapist, Kent.
“Since completing the course I have advised a number of people to have lesions checked. One lady had a suspicious mole on her nose which her GP said was nothing to worry about! I urged her to get a second opinion - it was melanoma which was fortunately removed in it’s early stages and had not spread”.
Sarah Breslin, Dental Hygienist and Aesthetician, Kent.
“I spotted a mole on the back of my mother’s arm that looked different and like examples of melanoma from my MASCED PRO training. With immediate action, she got a 2 week urgent referral and had it removed. It was confirmed to be a melanoma ‘in situ’ and therefore thankfully had not spread”.
Joanne Elmes, Dental Hygienist, Devon
“I personally can’t thank SKCIN enough for the incredible message they are sending to everyone, from therapist to medics to schools and beyond. They will probably never be aware of how many lives they have played a part in saving and how many in the future!”
Andrea Simpson, Facialist, Derbyshire.
“I noticed a tiny mole on my husbands foot starting to change. It became darker and slightly raised. Having just updated my MASCED training, my suspicions were confirmed. The biopsy results came back diagnosing melanoma in situ. Thankfully we caught it in time!”
Justyna Rostek, Beauty Therapist, London.
“My Daughter did the MASCED training and immediately alerted me to a faint, brown, vertical line down my nail, so I was quick to get reviewed by my GP. When I saw my Dermatologist, it had entered my cuticle and the biopsy confirmed the early stages of Melanoma - she literally saved my life!”
Ashleigh Newton, Beauty Therapist, West Midlands.
Due to my training I noticed changes to a mole on my mum’s arm and I urged her to take immediate action. She was diagnosed with melanoma, but luckily it had not spread. A huge thank you for having a course so accessible and providing such valuable information. This course has saved my mums life!”
Lauren Boylan, Aesthetic Therapist, Hampshire.
Skcin are proud to be recognised and supported by key sector bodies and industry icons who realise the power of the MASCED training and the value it adds to the communities in which professionals operate. The training is endorsed by Habia worth 3 CDP, accredited by the Federation of Holistic Therapists and officially recognised and supported by BABTAC, the National Hair and Beauty Federation and the British Beauty Council.
“Skcin is constantly finding innovative ways of raising awareness and educating the public on skin cancer. Early on, Skcin realised the crucial role that hair, health and beauty professionals can play in the prevention and early detection of skin cancer. I believe collaborating with charities such as Skcin is crucial to our sector’s growth and understanding of wider social matters.”
Millie Kendall MBE, CEO of the British Beauty Council and industry icon
“MASCED is an excellent resource to promote skin cancer awareness and the vital early detection of the disease. The training is very professional, with well written content and great visuals which will appeal to hair and beauty industry professionals. Very clear to navigate. Good clean design, clear text, tabs and titles, worth 3 CPD points”.
Joan Scott, CEO and Chair on the Hair and Beauty Industry Authority.
“Skcin’s commitment to this cause over the past decade has been unwavering and the FHT is proud to support Skcin’s online training course, MASCED within the industry. Therapists, armed with reliable information and resources are ideally placed to offer prevention guidance and to also spot potentially abnormal changes in their clients’ aiding in the vital early diagnosis of the disease.”
Judith Hadley, President of the Federation of Holistic Therapies.
“BABTAC have long supported Skcin’s vital work in education. With skin cancer cases increasing, they tirelessly continue to raise awareness of the dangers and highlight how beauty professionals can help with early detection by undertaking their MASCED training programme.”
Lesley Blair, CEO and Chair of BABTAC
“Hair & beauty professionals work up close with clients and this puts them in a unique position to notice skin changes and aid in the early detection, diagnosis and treatment of skin cancer. NHBF fully support Skcin’s MASCED programme which is making a significant impact and we will continue to encourage our Members to take part in this vital training for industry professionals.”
Caroline Larissey, Chief Executive of the National Hair and Beauty Federation.
Registered professionals have been posted printed training packs and resources
Accredited professionals across both MASCED and MASCED PRO training programmes
93% of proffessionals rate the training five stars and 99.6% would recommend
International learners registered from 27 different countries across the globe
SKCIN work nationally with colleges, training academies, universities, spas and brands by facilitating the bulk purchase of courses to train both emerging professionals and to enhance the skills of specialist therapists associated with spas and professional skin care brands. To find out how we can support your training needs, please get in touch.
