Over a million people in the United States this past year have discovered that they are the victims of skin cancer. Melanoma is one type of skin cancer that can have very serious consequences. Skin cancer prevention methods are your best means in preventing skin cancer. Because your skin is not a common thought when it comes to cancer, many people neglect it by not taking care to protect themselves against the sun’s UV rays and thereby put themselves at risk. Generally people equate a golden tan with health and wellness making sun exposure and tanning salons a cause for concern and increasing the risk of skin cancer.
The latest research on melanoma states that skin cell changes due to sun exposure can account for future possible melanoma. They believe that this risk could have possibly been accounted for during the childhood or teenage years due to more exposure of the legs and trunk of the body. These are the areas that are commonly exposed during this time as opposed to during the adult years. These studies also revealed that melanoma starts on the neck, the face, and the arms commonly for the men.
A new development in skin cancer research is gene therapy. By performing clinical trials in gene therapy researchers are finding that adding certain genes to the cancer cells will also aid in combating against cancer. Immune therapy is another area of study being done. Scientists are working on a vacination that will cause a persons body to reject the growth of melanocytes which are the cells involved in melanoma.
Wearing sunscreen while outdoors, wearing proper clothing limiting the body’s exposure to the sunlight, including a wide brimmed hat, wearing proper eye protection with wearing sunglasses, avoiding the hot intensity of the sun between 10 am and 4 pm and avoiding tanning salons are all positive skin cancer prevention measures. Using these preventative measures will also reduce your potential for developing any of the three different types of skin cancer.
Check your body every month for new growths or moles, changes in size, shape, and color of existing moles and growths are also prevention measures. Skin cancer research continues to progress as researchers search for better ways to catch skin cancer early and improved methods of treatment.
See your doctor regularly and have these already existing moles and growths or any new moles and growths examined by your physician. Be smart and practice sun safety protection for your best optimal means of prevention.
RESOURCES
National Foundation for Cancer Research: Skin Cancer Research
Cancer Research UK: Melanoma Skin Cancer
National Cancer Institute: Skin Cancer
Case Western Reserve University: Skin Cancer REsearch Insitute
Skin Cancer Foundation: Research Grants
National Human Genome Research Institute: Learning About Skin Cancer
American Cancer Society: What\’s New in Skin Cancer Research