With more and more Canadians being diagnosed with skin cancer, one of the keys to successful prevention is controlling how much sun you get.
Today marks World Melanoma Day, and Pacific Derm’s Dr. Rivers explained how part of staying safe is prevention and knowing the risk factors:
- pale skin
- lots of moles
- blond or red hair
- tanning bed usage
- family history of skin cancer
He continued to explain the three types skin cancers: Basal cell, squamous cell, and melanoma.
Dr. Rivers described in detail what melanoma looks like: “A spot that is more irregular than the other spots, it’s darker than the other spots or may have multiple colours, it may be growing faster than other spots. These are things you should look at. For men, the most common area that we see melanoma is on the back.”
His main advice on prevention are the following:
- use sunscreen with SPF 30 or higher
- wear a hat
- avoid direct sun exposure
- avoid tanning beds
The interview concluded with a description of the various possible treatments for non-melanoma skin cancer as well as melanoma itself.