By Melissa Snow
Skin cancer is the most common of all cancers and accounts for nearly half of all cancers in the United States. More than two million cases of non-melanoma skin cancer are found in this country each year. Melanoma, the most serious type of skin cancer, accounted for approximately 68,130 cases of skin cancer in 2010. This type of skin cancer begins in the melanocytes – the cells that produce the skin coloring known as melanin. Melanin helps protect the deeper layers of the skin from the harmful effects of the sun.
Melanoma is almost always curable when it is detected in its early stages. Although melanoma accounts for only a small percentage of skin cancer, it is far more dangerous than other skin cancers and causes most skin cancer deaths. Risk factors for non-melanoma and melanoma skin cancers include: unprotected and/or excessive exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation; fair complexion; occupational exposures to coal tar, pitch, creosote, arsenic compounds, or radium; family history; multiple or atypical moles; and severe sunburns as a child.
Skin cancer can be found early, and both doctors and patients play important roles in finding it. Symptoms include: 1) Any change on the skin, especially in the size or color of a mole or other darkly pigmented growth or spot, or a new growth; 2) Scaliness, oozing, bleeding, or change in the appearance of a bump or nodule; 3) The spread of pigmentation beyond its border, such as dark coloring that spreads past the edge of a mole or mark; and 4) A change in sensation, itchiness, tenderness, or pain.
The best ways to lower the risk of skin cancer are to avoid intense sunlight for long periods of time and to practice sun safety.
1) Avoid the sun between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.
2) Seek shade: Look for shade, especially in the middle of the day when the sun’s rays are strongest. Practice the shadow rule and teach it to children: If your shadow is shorter than you, the sun’s rays are at their strongest.
3) Slip on a shirt: Cover up with protective clothing to guard as much skin as possible when you are out in the sun. Choose comfortable clothes made of tightly woven fabrics that you cannot see through when held up to a light.
4) Slop on sunscreen: Use sunscreen and lip balm with a sun protection factor (SPF) of 15 or higher. Apply a generous amount of sunscreen (about a palmful) and reapply after swimming, toweling dry, or perspiring. Use sunscreen even on hazy or overcast days.
5) Slap on a hat: Cover your head with a wide-brimmed hat, shading your face, ears, and neck. If you choose a baseball cap, remember to protect your ears and neck with sunscreen.
6) Wrap on sunglasses: Wear sunglasses with 99 percent to 100 percent UV absorption to provide optimal protection for the eyes and the surrounding skin.
7) Follow these practices to protect your skin even on cloudy or overcast days. UV rays travel through clouds.
8) Avoid other sources of UV light. Tanning beds and sun lamps are dangerous because they can damage your skin.
9) Check all of your skin once a month for changes, including size, shape, color, and number of spots.
More about skin cancer and melanoma can be found on the American Cancer Society website.
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