Skin Cancer Awareness Series Part 1: What You Don’t Know About Skin Cancer Can Hurt You

This month, Price Skin Care Clinic is publishing a three-part series about skin cancer, joining skin care professionals across the United States for ‘Skin Cancer Awareness Month’.

Over the next few weeks, we’ll publish the following blog posts:
• Part 1: What You Don’t Know About Skin Cancer Can Hurt You
• Part 2: Spot it Early: What Skin Cancer Looks Like
• Part 3: Protect Your Skin: An Ounce of Prevention …

Our first blog post, “What You Don’t Know About Skin Cancer Can Hurt You’ is featured below.

Part 1: What You Don’t Know About Skin Cancer Can Hurt You
As the summer vacation season nears, most Americans are planning fun-in-the-sun activities over the next few months. That makes May – Skin Cancer Awareness Month – the perfect time to talk about skin cancer.

“They say that ‘knowledge is power’ and that’s certainly true when it comes to knowing what skin cancer is, how common it is and who is most at risk for it,” said Richard Price, M.D., of Price Skin Care Clinic in Ridgeland, Mississippi. “We hope that everyone reading these articles will use this information to keep their skin healthy and cancer free.”

What Is Skin Cancer?
Skin cancer occurs when unrepaired DNA damage causes mutations in the cells of the epidermis – the exterior layer of the skin. These mutations cause the cells to multiply and form malignant tumors which can be deadly if not detected early.
The primary forms of skin cancer are:
• Basal cell carcinoma
• Squamous cell carcinoma
• Melanoma
• Merkel cell carcinoma

How Common Is Skin Cancer?
According to the skincancer.org website:
• More than 9,500 Americans are diagnosed with skin cancer every day.
• More than two die of the disease every hour.
• Some 5.4 million cases of nonmelanoma skin cancer were treated in over 3.3 million people in the U.S. in 2012.
• More Americans are diagnosed with skin cancer than all other cancers combined.
• At least one in five Americans will develop skin cancer by the age of 70
• Actinic keratosis is the most common precancer, affecting more than 58 million Americans.

What are Common Risk Factors for Skin Cancer?
Some of the most common risk factors for skin cancer include:
• Unprotected Exposure to UVA & UVB Rays
• Sunburns
• Indoor tanning
• Skin Type
• Genetics
• Atypical Moles
• Red Hair

Benefits of Early Detection
The good news is that early detection of skin cancer saves lives. That’s because skin cancers are usually visible and can often be caught early by conducting monthly skin exams at home and annual skin exams with a skin health professional.

In Part Two of our series this month, we’ll focus on what skin cancer looks like, how to conduct monthly self-exams and when you should see a skin doctor.

Skin Cancer Awareness Month is the perfect time to schedule your annual skin exam with a skin professional at Price Skin Care Clinic. To schedule your appointment, call 601.992.3996.