WBBL star Georgia Redmayne leads groundbreaking skin cancer study in cricket

Georgia Redmayne has been a star of WBBL and WNCL cricket in Queensland, yet she may have a bigger impact off the field through research into skin cancer in the game.

Georgia Redmayne is having an impact off the field through a new skin cancer study. Picture: Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images

A leading domestic cricketer is helping drive a groundbreaking study into the incidence of skin cancers in professional players.

Queensland and Brisbane Heat wicketkeeper-batter Georgia Redmayne, who is also a qualified doctor, is working with Cricket Australia and the Australian Cricketers’ Association to collate data from former and current cricketers in a bid to better understand the risks posed sun exposure while playing the sport.

The players association issued surveys to players to gain data on skin cancers.

Redmayne, 30, is working with veteran sports physician John Orchard on the study.

“It’s something that’s been going on for a little while now,” Redmayne told this masthead.

“It’s kind of slow progress in terms of getting the data together and organising and basically we worked out a survey just to try to compare skin cancer incidence rates in elite cricketers versus the general population.

“Cricket Australia and the ACA have been pretty on the ball in terms of trying to organise yearly screening for current players and also past players, in terms of getting cancer screening and getting dermatologists involved.

“And we’re really lucky, we got a lot of dermatologists on board in that space. But just to try to kind of assess objectively what the rate is and the risk is, because I feel like, as a current player I know a handful of current players have been diagnosed with melanoma, which certainly seems a lot more than general population of that age group.

Redmayne with the gloves for Queensland this season. Picture: Chris Hyde/Getty Images

Redmayne said those working on the study had received responses from around 40 per cent of surveys issued.

“We certainly got a decent number of responses,” she said.

“That gives us a good data set. It would be great to get more but it’s been interesting, and having the difference in the male and the female as well. Obviously, there’s a lot more male past player that we have in the records.

“(We are) going through it now and looking at those differences, and then also taking into account a lot of the other factors that also come into play with these things.”

Australian left-arm Test quick Lauren Cheatle has twice been diagnosed with skin cancer, the first on her leg and the second – earlier this year – on her neck.

“It’s probably one of the more prominent health topics that you can probably relate to and one that probably is more on the mind of players than health issues that seem a lot further down the line so to speak,” Redmayne said.

“Hopefully we get a chance to maybe get a publication out of it and use it to justify and make sure that we get the best kind of skin coverage for current and past players so we’re looking after them.”

Having been selected to the Australian squad in 2021 without being capped, Redmayne has come off a successful winter in The Hundred and the Caribbean Premier League and has not given up hope of a national recall.

“I’d love to be able to play for Australia, but I can only control what I can, try to play the best I can. And at the end of the day, if someone decides that’s good enough, that’s great. And if they don’t, then I’ve just got to be content with what I’m able to achieve.”

Originally published as WBBL star Georgia Redmayne leads groundbreaking skin cancer study in cricket