Andrew Rust nominated for Pride of Australia Medal for spreading the slip, slop, slap message one Australian town at a time

WHEN Andrew Rust was a young surf lifesaver he didn’t bother with sunscreen. Then came the cancer. He’s now ­determined to spread the slip, slop, slap message.

WHEN Andrew Rust was a young surf lifesaver he didn’t bother with sunscreen.

When friends suggested he did, his reply was: “She’ll be right, mate.”

But what the Helensburgh graphic designer didn’t ­expect was to be diagnosed with stage 4 melanoma as a 28-year-old new dad.

He’s been fighting for his life ever since, and is now ­determined to spread the message that you have to slip, slop, slap to survive — one Aussie town at a time.

Nominations are now open for the Pride of Australia awards

Julie Frost nominated for her care of families with sick kids

On July 11 the now 41-year-old will start the 900km walk from Sydney to Melbourne with friend and fellow melanoma sufferer Jay Allen.

.

The pair will walk up to 70km a day in tandem, speaking to schools and community groups at townships along the way about the importance of sun protection. They will finish at the MCG, walking to the stadium before the Hawthorne v Swans game.

They’ve already raised $41,000 for the Melanoma Institute Australia and hope to raise $150,000 by the time they reach Melbourne after their 16-day trek.

“It was 2002 when I had a mole on the small of my back and I did the very blokey thing and didn’t address it — you have a bulletproof mentality and don’t think it will happen to you,” Mr Rust said.

“It went away, but then I got a lump in my groin which my GP and I thought was a hernia. So he operated to fix it, and found it was a tumour.

“The doctors didn’t like my chances, so it was pretty confronting, especially as I had a 1½-year-old daughter and I couldn’t imagine not seeing her grow up.”

Andrew Rust will finish the walk at the MCG before the Hawthorne v Swans game. Picture: Stephen Cooper

After 10 major operations Mr Rust has been able to watch his little girl Madelaine grow into the beautiful teenager she is today.

Mr Rust has been nominated for The Daily Telegraph’s Pride of Australia Courage Medal for inspiring others through adversity.

“If this saves someone from going through what we’ve been through, then it’s worth it,” he said.