News & Information - The Mercury - July 2009 Mercury

by Mary Katherine Murphy
CHPPM

Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the United States. Melanoma is the third most common skin cancer and the most dangerous among young people. Melanoma killed 7,952 people in 2004 in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Skin cancer is also the most preventable of all types of cancer and, if diagnosed early, is highly curable. Melanoma is the most dangerous form of skin cancer because of its ability to metastasize (spread to other parts of the body). Nonmelanomas (skin cancers that are not melanoma) are dangerous as well; they are responsible for 95 percent of all skin cancer cases, according to the American Cancer Society.

Soldiers are at risk for skin cancer because of their duties. Their risk increases if deployed or training because of the time spent outdoors.

Soldiers can protect themselves from the sun and decrease their chances of developing skin cancer by following these rules:

* Seek shade during the hours of 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. when the sun’s ultraviolet rays are strongest and do the most damage.

* Cover up, roll down the sleeves of ACUs and wear a wide-brimmed hat where authorized.

* Wear protective eyewear—the most protective wraps around the face and blocks out as close to 100 percent of UVA and UVB rays as possible.

* Rub on sunscreen with a sun protective factor (SPF) of 15 or higher, and both UVA and UVB protection. Apply at least every two hours.

* Never use tanning beds.

Soldiers should be particularly vigilant in protecting themselves from the sun if they have any of the following risk factors:

-- Family or personal history of skin cancer

-- Lighter natural skin color

-- Getting sunburned as a child

-- Blue or green eyes

-- Blond or red hair

-- Skin that burns or freckles in the sun

-- Having a large number of moles

-- Spending large amounts of time in the sun

Soldiers should check their entire body once a year for suspicious moles. If moles, freckles, lesions or spots on the skin have any of the following signs, they should be checked by a physician:

Asymmetry: If you draw a line through a mole, and the two halves do not match.

Border: If a mole or other mark has a jagged or blended border.

Color: If a mole is made up of multiple colors or changes colors.

Diameter: If a mole is greater than 5 millimeters in diameter (bigger than the end of a pencil eraser).

Evolving: If a mole changes in size, shape, color or elevation, or if it becomes cracked or infected and does not heal within a month.

Over-exposure to sunlight increases the aging process. Cumulative exposure to the sun weakens the skin’s elasticity, leading to sagging cheeks, deeper facial wrinkles, leathery skin and skin discoloration later in life. The sun’s effects can be pleasant and attractive at first; however Soldiers should understand the long-term effects will not be.

From the July 2009 Mercury, an Army Medical Department publication.