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Skin Cancer Awareness

Skin cancer is the most common type of cancer. The American Cancer Society recommends that you:

Visit the American Cancer Society Site and test your Sun Safety IQ.

Skin Cancer

Over half of all cancers in the United States are skin cancer.

There are two types of skin cancer: melanoma type and non melanoma type. Both types are easily treatable if found early. Melanoma can spread to other parts of the body easily and is a very serious, frequently fatal, cancer. Non melanoma skin cancers (basal and squamous cell skin cancer) are the most common type of skin cancers. They do not spread as easily as melanoma. However, if not treated, these cancers can spread to other parts of the body. Non melanoma skin cancers are most often found on sun exposed skin: face, ear, neck, lips, and backs of the hands.

Prevention

Protecting skin from the sun will help prevent all types of skin cancer. It is especially important to protect skin from the sun during childhood and adolescence. Research has shown a link between sunburns in children and an increased risk of skin cancer in adulthood. It is important to follow the recommendations of the American Cancer Society.

Other things can be done to prevent skin cancer:

• Do not use tanning beds! They put you at risk for skin cancer as much as the sun does.
• Do not use tanning pills. They have not been proven safe. Get more information on tanning pills.
• Avoid the sun between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. The sun causes the most damage during these times.
• Seek shade when out in the sun. Practice the shadow rule. If your shadow is shorter than you, the sun’s rays are at their strongest.
• Wear protective clothing to cover the skin when out in the sun. Clothing should be made of tightly woven fabrics that you cannot see through when held up to a light.
• Apply sunscreen with a SPF of 15 or higher frequently and generously. Reapply sunscreen after swimming, toweling dry, or perspiring. Use sunscreen even on hazy or overcast days. Apply sunscreen before applying insect repellent or makeup.
• Wear a hat that has a wide brim that shades your face, neck, and ears.
• Wear sunglasses with 99-100 percent UV absorption to provide optimal protection for the eyes and the surrounding skin.
• Follow these practices to protect your skin even on cloudy or overcast days. The sun’s rays can travel through clouds and damage your skin.

Detecting Skin Cancer

The warning signs of skin cancer are:

• 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
• The spread of pigmentation beyond its border such as dark coloring that spreads past the edge of a mole or mark
• A change in sensation, itchiness, tenderness, or pain
• A sore that does not heal
• A new growth
• Redness or a new swelling beyond the border
• Change in the surface of a mole – scaliness, oozing, bleeding, or the appearance of a bump or nodule.

The ABCD Rule for Early Detection of Melanoma

Almost everyone has moles. The vast majority of moles are perfectly harmless. A change in a mole’s appearance is a sign that you should see your doctor. Here’s the simple ABCD rule to help you remember the important signs of melanoma and other skin cancers:

• A is for ASYMMETRY: One-half of a mole or birthmark does not match the other.
• B is for BORDER: The edges are irregular, ragged, notched, or blurred.
• C is for COLOR The color is not the same all over, but may have differing shades of brown or black, sometimes with patches of red, white, or blue.
• D is for DIAMETER: The area is larger than 6 millimeters (about ¼ inch -- the size of a pencil eraser) or is growing larger.

The American Cancer Society recommends that everyone does a monthly skin exam.

How to Examine Your Skin

Get familiar with your skin and your own pattern of moles, freckles, blemishes, and birthmarks. Check your skin monthly, and be alert to changes in the number, size, shape, or color of spots on your skin or sores that do not heal.

The best time to do this simple exam is after a bath or shower. Use a full-length and a hand mirror so you can check your skin from head to toe, noting anything new.

Face the mirror:

1. Check your face, ears, neck, chest, and belly.
2. Check both sides of your arms and the tops and palms of your hands.

Sit down:

1. Check the front of your thighs, shins, tops of your feet, and in between your toes.
2. Now look at the bottom of your feet, your calves, and the backs of your thighs – first one leg, then the other. (You will need a hand mirror for the backs of your thighs.)

Stand Up:

1. Use the hand mirror to check the buttocks, lower back, upper back, and the back of the neck. (It may be helpful to look at your back in a wall mirror by using a hand mirror.)

If you do the exam regularly, you will know what is normal for you and can feel confident. Remember the warning signs and check with your health care professional or dermatologist if you find something.

The most common skin cancers – basal cell and squamous cell – often take the form of a pale, wax-like, pearly nodule, a red scaly, sharply outlined patch, or a sore that does not heal. Another form of skin cancer – melanoma – often starts as a small, mole-like growth.

Other important signs of melanoma include changes in size, shape, or color of a mole or the appearance of a new spot. Some melanomas do not fit the ABCD rule described above, so it is particularly important for you to be aware of changes in skin lesions or a new skin lesion.

Reference and for more information:
American Cancer Society