Skin Cancer

Question: How high are my chances of getting skin cancer? Yesterday I was at the pool with my friend, and she told me I have high chances of getting skin cancer. I have blond hair, blue eyes, very pale skin, I get burned easily, lots of moles and beauty marks, and I actually have a family history of cancer. She said these all made my chances higher of getting skin cancer. If so, should I use more sunscreen? What SPF? How can I help prevent skin cancer but still go outside regularly? Thanks for all of your help!

Answer: There are simple things you can do to try and protect yourself from skin cancer. 1) Wear a hat when you know you'll be outside for longer than half an hour. It doesn't have to be a full blown sun hat, a baseball or newsboy hat will do. 2) If you know that you'll at the beach or the pool, make sure you apply SPF 50 sunscreen. 3) The suns UV rays are strongest the hours between 11am and 4pm. 4) Remember, concrete sand and water can reflect the suns rays, so even if you are just going to the park you can put on a little bit of sunscreen. 5) If you were make up ever day, they make foundations with SPF 15 in them. 6) Wear chap stick or put in on under any other lip products(Lip gloss, lip stick) because chap stick normally has SPF 5 in it. 7) Don't go sun tanning or to tanning salons, because these both will increase your chances of radiation.

Question: How do you detect skin cancer in a cat? Can cats get skin cancer? Because I think my cat may be developing it. He has this one spot on his back that is especially dandruffy, and it is dry and the fur is getting thinner, and whenever you touch right there he starts licking his chest, and basicly freaking out. I love my cat dearly and want to help him. He isn't allowed out doors, but i have no clue what he has. He is overweight, but most of his fur is soft and beautiful except for the one spot He weighs around 18 pounds and is 6 years old, going on 7. PLease help me i love my cat. He is the best pet i have ever had. I treat him like he is my son I highly doubt my parents will believe me. Do you think I'm stupid? I would ask a cet if I could *vet is what i meant to say MY cat is not allowed out doors...he has dark fur.

Answer: Go to a vet

Question: What kind of harsh chemicals may cause skin cancer? I use to work at Good Tire Rubber Company making 'belts' for commerical use. I was a mixer and used alot of harsh chemicals. I now have Basal Cell Cancer, which is typically caused by the sun. I am more interested in could the chemicals that we would use at Goodyear be the cause of my skin cancer?

Answer: Chemicals Contact with a number of different chemicals can increase your risk of non-melanoma skin cancer. These are Coal tar Soot Pitch Asphalt Creosote Paraffin wax Petroleum products Arsenic Check out this website for other sources:

Question: How many people die from skin cancer yearly? I'm doing a biology project on skin cancer, and I'm making a brochure. I'm focusing on basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma and melanoma, but I just need this bit of information in general. So I just need to know how many people die of skin cancer in general, just an approximation. Thankss.

Answer: Melanoma is the least common skin cancer but it is potentially the most serious: there are over 8,000 new cases each year in the UK and 1,800 deaths. Over one million new cases of skin cancer are diagnosed in the US yearly. About 80% are basal cell carcinoma, 16% are squamous cell carcinoma, and 4% are melanoma. The incidence of both non-melanoma and melanoma skin cancers has been increasing over the past decades. Currently, between 2 and 3 million non-melanoma skin cancers and 132,000 melanoma skin cancers occur globally each year. One in every three cancers diagnosed is a skin cancer and, according to Skin Cancer Foundation Statistics, one in every five Americans will develop skin cancer in their lifetime. As ozone levels are depleted, the atmosphere loses more and more of its protective filter function and more solar UV radiation reaches the Earth's surface. It is estimated that a 10 per cent decrease in ozone levels will result in an additional 300,000 non-melanoma and 4,500 melanoma skin cancer cases. The global incidence of melanoma continues to increase – however, the main factors that predispose to the development of melanoma seem to be connected with recreational exposure to the sun and a history of sunburn. These factors lie within each individual's own responsibility.

Question: What are the first signs of skin cancer? I can get sunburned pretty easily. I've already gotten sunburned pretty bad more then once. My mother's worried I'll get skin cancer, so I would like to know what are signs of skin cancer.

Answer: Extremely dark freckles, dark or pale patches on your skin void of any colour. If you have an area that concerns you please speak with your doctor as they are trained to recognize precancerous skin.

Question: How long before you can detect skin cancer? Recently, I got sunburned really bad on my back and shoulders. I have a couple new flat freckles. How and when can you tell you have skin cancer? And, can you develop skin cancer without seeing anything noticeable?

Answer: There is usually some change in the skin - a mole or even a red area which a friend of mine has just had diagnosed as skin cancer and is using a chemo cream instead of surgery. Any suspicious spots should be reported to a doctor for checking.

Question: Should we have a pale skin is beautiful campaign to tackle skin cancer? The skin cancer epidemic is huge right now.Should the media be focusing on teaching people we don't have to be tanned to be beautiful?Thoughts please! ie.Use Nicole Kidman as an example on pale beauty.

Answer: That's a fantastic idea. Nicole Kidman and Anne Hathaway would be great spokespersons for staying out of the sun. When they do interviews in magazines, both of them emphasize the importance of sun protection. Fake tans are perfectly safe, even though they look really fake. It's the real tans (from the sun or tanning beds) that can cause skin cancer. I don't really think we need a campaign against using fake tanner and looking like an oompa-loompa.

Question: What is the best way to avoid skin cancer while being in the sun? I know sunscreen is a must, what else can be done to protect your body from skin cancer?

Answer: One simple thing you can do (besides always using a good UVA/UVB suntan lotion) is to wear a wide brimmed hat when out in the sun. The edges of your ears are a prime location for the development of skin cancers. Because of the increased blood supply and tissue structure, skin cancers located on the edges of the ear are hard to treat and cure. Cancers located on the edges of the ear also tend to spread inward quickly more quickly than a skin cancer located on the body trunk. Wearing a brimmed hat besides suntan lotion will stop this particular risk factor completely.

Question: What does sunburn have to do with skin cancer? I've heard having a bad sunburn can increase your chances of having skin cancer by so much. How much? Also, other things about sunburn releated to skin cancer. Thanks in advance for your help.

Answer: UV light is energetic enough to bounce electrons away from molecules in your DNA. When that happens, the configuration of the DNA changes and it cannot replicate. Your body does have ways of preventing this, but if it happens enough, it cant keep up and more errors build up and cancer starts appearing from all the errors. Mistakes in DNA=cancer.

Question: Why is tanned skin more important than the risk of Cancer? Why do you think the societal preference for "tan" skin often outweighs the risks of developing skin cancer? Are tanning booths safe, and why is the appeal so strong that people just ignore the warnings?

Answer: Tanning has been popular only since the 1920s. I read somewhere that it began with Coco Chanel, the famous fashion designer and perfume inventor. She went off somewhere, came back with a tan, and suddenly it was high fashion. We know more about it today than we used to. It causes more trouble than just the occasional skin cancer. It causes skin to dry out and wrinkle faster. Still, a tan makes you look healthy and active. I can see the appeal. I think it's possible to minimize the cancer and risk of skin damage if it's done right, not overdone. I think this would be easier in a tanning bed where you can actually control the amount of light your body gets.

Question: Skin cancer? Can over-excessive (and sort of compulsive) pinching of the face lead to skin cancer? I've had that awful habit for many years already, even in cases when I don't have pimples. I know it is harmful for my face, and only for that I am quitting it, but can it actually be as detrimental as to cause skin cancer? Just wondering...

Answer: No, but it will basically lead to scars on your face. Cancer is either hereditary, caused by chemicals called carcinogens, or caused by some kind of radiation (including sunlight)

Question: What is the best way to prevent me from getting skin cancer? I am very frightened about getting this type of cancer. I am in the sun a lot and don't usually wear sunscreen, where I live it is very hot and the sun is always out really. I do have freckles and I read that it might mean I have a better chance of getting skin cancer. What is the best way to prevent it?

Answer: Either wear sunscreen all the time, wear long sleeved clothes, or just avoid the sun any other way you can. Good luck, but I just love to hang in the sun. I never get burned so it's all good. Some people aren't like that though. I'm sorry.

Question: How can you minimize the risk of getting skin cancer? Scientists know that the UV rays from sunlight can contribute to skin cancer, so how do you minimize the risk of getting skin cancer?

Answer: wear sun screen. Tanning and getting burned realyl speed up teh process so dont do that too much.

Question: What is the affect of skin cancer on your body? I know how skin cancer is detected and treated, but what exactly does it do to your body when you get. Please explain in detail and links will be very appreciated.

Answer: Quite simple. Basal and Squamous cell carcinomas destroy tissues at the surface of the skin, and if left untreated, can develop deep lesions that can become problematic. Its unlikely you would let them get that far along without doing something about them. Melanoma, on the other hand, is a silent killer. Its hard to detect because it has no real symptoms, outside of shape, size, and color. Generally it has to be diagnosed by a doctor. Treatment is quite simple, if caught in time, it is simply surgically removed. If left untreated, and it metastasizes into the body, then a serious problem exists that might not be fixable. General rules, if its the size of a pencil eraser, has irregular borders, has black or blue coloration, is associated with a mole, or it can be quite flat, and/or recent changes have occurred, you should see a physician very soon.

Question: What are the affects of skin cancer if it goes untreated? I just found out that i may have skin cancer, if I don't get any treatment for it what will happen?

Answer: Well the speed and such depends on what type. But basically it will continue to grow. At some point, it will start to spread. Then those too will grow and this will continue until it kills you. Marv

Question: What are the best vegetables to eat to prevent skin cancer? I have read that red cabbage contains chemicals (anthocyanins), that cause a person's cells to create an enzyme that repairs DNA damage. I also read that strawberries contain a type of acid, along with polyphenols, that supposedly prevent skin cancer. Can anyone verify this? Any idea to the mechanism of the protective actions?

Answer: http://abcnews.go.com/Health/CancerPreve… "According to recent statistics the rising incidence of skin cancer is one of the main problems in United States. Considering that this condition appears to be becoming an epidemic, very critical is to develop new approaches to primary and secondary prevention. As consequences we can see many studies exploring the therapeutic value of natural ingredients and researches suggest that common fruit and vegetables extracts may have an important clinical benefits in lowering risk for skin cancer. It is well-known that fruits and vegetables contain a variety of minerals and vitamins and other bioactive substances that include lutein, flavonoids, folic acid, vitamins C and E, and fiber. The folic acid has a key role in repair and synthesis of DNA, and all dark green leafy vegetables are very rich in it. So, new findings show with no doubt that higher intakes of green leafy vegetables may help prevent Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) tumors among patients who have prior skin cancers. Another new finding is that pigment that gives certain fruits their dark red colors has an antioxidant activity higher than that of green tea and red wine. Researchers evaluated that pomegranate fruit extract (PFE) is capable of inhibiting conventional as well as new biomarkers of TPA-induced tumors and they may have chemopreventive action in a wide category of tumor models"