The Village News :: Protect your skin; May is Skin Cancer Awareness Month

Here's a great reason to consider a sunless tan!
As most people are aware, too much sun can cause
skin cancer. Sunless tanning is an excellent
alternative.


The Village News :: Protect your skin;
May is Skin Cancer Awareness Month:

4/21/2006 8:01:46 PM

Feeling pale? You may think that a golden tan looks
healthy and attractive but sun worshippers beware:
you could be causing skin cancer, the most common
type of cancer in the United States.

The disease can result from long-term exposure to
sunlight, which emits ultraviolet radiation (UV rays)
that damage skin cells and can lead to one of three
types of skin cancer: basal cell carinoma, squamous
cell carcinoma or melanoma. While people should
take precautions from sun exposure all year-round,
protection is especially important during the summer
months, when the sun is directly overhead for a longer
period and UV ray levels are highest.

"Skin cancer, especially melanoma, can be deadly,"
says Lily Lai, MD, skin cancer expert at City of Hope
Cancer Center in Los Angeles. "Fortunately, skin
cancers are preventable and highly curable if found
and treated early."

Several risk factors increase the chance of skin
cancer, but everyone is at risk of developing the
disease. Some of these risk factors include: having
fair skin that freckles easily, living in warm climates
with high sun exposure and/or high altitudes,
occupational exposure (such as working outdoors),
overall lifetime exposure to the sun and having many
moles.

Here are some tips to protect your skin from harmful
UV rays all year-round:

• Avoid exposure to midday sun (between 10 a.m.
and 3 p.m.), when UV rays are most dangerous.

• Use sunscreen with a sun protective factor (SPF)
of 15 or higher whenever you spend time outdoors.
Remember to reapply sunscreen every one to
one-and-a-half hours.

• Wear protective clothing such as hats and long-sleeved
shirts that block the sun’s rays.

• Protect young children from the sun’s rays. The
damaging effects of UV radiation can begin in
childhood.

• Be careful when taking certain medications that
may cause the skin to burn more easily. Check
with your doctor or pharmacist to determine if
your medication could be a problem.

• Avoid sun lamps and tanning booths. “Having a
tan, natural or artificial, is a sign that the skin has
already been damaged,” says Lai. “Since tanning
booths expose you to ultraviolet rays just as the sun
does, using a sunless tanner is the best way to
get a tan without damaging your skin.”

For more information about skin cancer research and
treatment at City of Hope Cancer Center in Los Angeles,
call 800-826-HOPE or visit www.cityofhope.org.



sunless tanning