Save your skin from cancer

1 in 5
Americans will develop skin cancer  in his or her lifetime.

More than 1 million
new cases of skin cancer will be diagnosed in the United States this year.

Every 61 minutes
an American dies of melanoma. In 2008, 8,420 deaths were attributed to melanoma – 5,400 men and 3,020 women.

65,161 people
worldwide will die each year from exposure to too much sun, mostly from malignant skin cancer.

More than 75 percent
of skin cancer deaths are from melanoma. And melanoma is increasing faster in females 15-29 years old than males in the same age group. In females 15-29 years old, the torso is the most common location for developing melanoma, which may be due to high-risk tanning behaviors.

99 percent
of people whose melanoma is detected and treated before it spreads to the lymph nodes will live at least five more years.

$1.5 billion
was the total direct cost associated with the treatment for nonmelanoma skin cancer in 2004. The American Cancer Society recommends periodic skin examination as part of any cancer-related checkup .

THE mirror can be a scary place.

Was that mole there yesterday, or is it new? Is that part of my sunburn-gone-bad or the beginnings of cancer?

Here are tips you can use to tell the so-called “barnacles of age,” which are harmless, from lesions you need to check out.

– Thanks to Dr. Antoinette Hood, chairman of the dermatology department at Eastern Virginia Medical School, the American Academy of Dermatology, National Cancer Institute for the information and prevention tips.

signs of trouble
-A mole that is different from others, itches, bleeds, or is changing in any way
-A sore that never fully heals
-Translucent growth with rolled edges
-Brown or black streak underneath a nail
-Cluster of slow-growing, shiny pink or red lesions
-Waxy-feeling scar
-Flat or slightly depressed lesion that feels hard to the touch

treatment
Depends on the type and stage, but can include:

-Surgery to remove cancerous skin cells and tumors

-Cryotherapy, in which liquid nitrogen or liquid carbon dioxide freezes and destroys abnormal tissue

-Chemotherapy, which uses drugs to stop the growth of cancer cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing. Can be in the form of medication or injection. Chemotherapy for non-melanoma skin cancer and actinic keratosis is usually in a topical form that can be applied to the skin in a cream or lotion

-Radiation therapy in which high-energy X-rays or other types of radiation kill cancer cells or keep them from growing

-Photodynamic therapy uses a drug and a type of laser light to kill cancer cells

-Chemical peeling applies a solution to the skin, causing the top layers to peel off. A chemical peel can diminish skin discoloration, such as age spots, freckles or blotchiness

risk factors
-Fair skin , blond hair, blue eyes, freckled skin.
-Family history of skin cancer.
-Had blistering sunburns as a child.
-Live in a sunny place and are exposed to the elements.
-Have more than 50 moles or irregular shaped moles.

don’t worry about
-Age spots or liver spots Flat, brown spots that usually occur in sun-exposed areas, such as the face, hands, shoulders and upper back are harmless and painless. (Except for the emotional pain of getting older!)

-Flesh moles Light brown, tan or black raised dark spots usually on the cheeks are common among blacks , most frequently in women, and they look like moles or flat warts.

They are a variant of seborrheic keratoses, which are noncancerous growths of the outer layer of skin that pop up on people across races.

These benign spots may have a waxy, “pasted-on” or “stuck-on” appearance. They often run in families and surface as people get older.

-Hyperpigmentation This is caused by an increase in melanin, the skin pigment in the body. This can happen in pregnant women, which some refer to as the “mask of pregnancy,” and is medically known as chloasma or melasma.

People with certain illnesses, such as Addison’s disease, also can get hyperpigmentation, and certain drugs, such as antibiotics, antiarrhythmics, and antimalarial medication, can cause it. Exposure to sunlight makes it worse.

do worry about and visit your doctor
-Actinic keratoses These lesions are the earliest stages in the development of certain skin cancers. Small, scaly spots, usually on the face, ears, neck, forearms, scalp and backs of hands.
his condition can progress to a more advanced stage of skin cancer.

-Basal cell carcinoma This is the most common type of skin cancer. A fleshy bump, nodule or red patch is found typically on the head and neck or on the trunk of the body and lower limbs.

-Squamous cell carcinoma This is the second most common skin cancer. A bump or red scaly patch on the rim of the ear, face, lips and mouth, usually on fair-skinned people.

-Malignant melanoma The most deadly type of skin cancer begins in the skin cells that produce the dark protective pigment of skin. It usually appears in mixed shades of tan, brown and black, but it can also be red or white.

It can begin suddenly in or near a mole.

The warning signs include changes in the surface of a mole, scaliness, oozing, bleeding or appearance of a new bump. Spread of pigment from the border of a mole into surrounding skin, itchiness, tenderness or pain.

Melanoma can occur anywhere on the skin or the nails, even in places not exposed to the sun like the eyes, mouth and genitals. However, it’s most commonly found on the backs of men and legs of women.

Prevention
-Stay out of the sun, or follow the slip-slop-slap rule:Slip on a shirt, slop on sunscreen, slap on a hat (broad-spectrum variety with an SPF of at least 15).
-Fifteen minutes of sun a day is enough to get the Vitamin D you need.
-Wear sun-protective clothing.
-Avoid indoor tanning salons, which also increase the risk of skin cancer.