PEOPLE in the Vale of White Horse are the most likely to die from the deadliest form of skin cancer than anyone else in England.

People from the district, which includes Abingdon, Wantage and Faringdon, have suffered the most cases of malignant melanomas, with West Oxfordshire and South Oxfordshire third and fourth respectively, according to a new report by the South West Public Health Observatory.

The fact many people in the county can afford more overseas holidays than other areas was being partly blamed for the high rates.

Oxford skin specialist Dr Richard Turner said he was not surprised by the findings, and advised people to avoid unnecessary sunbathing.

The Skin Cancer Profiles report revealed incident rates in the South East showed just under 17 malignant melan- oma cases per 100,000 people – a total of 4,824 between 2004 and 2006.

In the Vale there were 116 cases over the three years.

The average number of deaths in the region was three per 100,000 over the same period, but in the Vale it was five.

In West Oxfordshire and South Oxfordshire it was about four.

Dr Turner, a dermatologist at the Churchill Hospital, in Headington, Oxford, said: “This week alone we are on our ninth melanoma patient.

“If we look at Oxfordshire as a whole, in 1999 we had just under 100 melanoma patients. Ten years on and we have between 220 and 230.”

The report looked at melanoma rates of all local authority areas in England.

South West Public Health Observatory director Dr Julia Verne said: “Rates of skin cancer have been rising for some time and these profiles show that there is no slowing down in sight.

“We know incident rates are highest in the South of the country because it gets more hours of sunlight compared to the North.

“The South typically has more fair-skinned people, who have less skin pigments to protect them from ultraviolet rays.

“We know that in the past melanomas in women have been more common in affluent groups because they have more chance to holiday abroad and spend time doing outdoor leisure activities.

“Oxfordshire is among the top fifth of the country in terms of affluence.”

Dr Turner said it could take up to 30 years for a malignant melanoma to develop.