UK Health Radio Medical News Update - Melanoma numbers up.

UK Health Radio  Medical News Update

With the weather hotting up and people heading for the beaches it might be a good time to talk about sun protection again.  Every year about 13,300 people will be diagnosed with malignant melanoma in the UK. It is now the 5th most common cancer overall in the UK, if you exclude skin cancers that are not melanoma. The numbers of people who are getting melanoma is now more than 4 times higher than it was 30 years ago. Looking at people over 15, the incidence goes up with age. Now melanoma is one of the most common types of cancer in people between the ages of 15 to 34. The highest incidence of melanoma is in people over 80.

Some of the increase in numbers of melanoma might be attributed to doctors being better at monitoring people for signs of melanoma, and then detecting the onset of the cancer early. But doctors say that the most likely reason for the increase is to do with a change in how much time we spend in the sun, and the number of people who now go abroad for holidays, when compared to 30 years ago.

There is one main environmental factor that increases the risk of developing melanoma - ultraviolet light that come from either the sun or sun beds. But some people are more at risk of getting melanoma than others. Over exposure to sunlight can cause patches of rough, dry skin called solar keratoses. Some patches are skin coloured, other patches are pink, red or brown. Studies show that people with solar keratoses have a risk of melanoma that is 4 times higher than the general population. Also the more moles you have on your body, the higher your risk of melanoma. Of course this doesn't mean you will definitely get melanoma if you have lots of moles. But it does mean you should be very careful about sun exposure. And you should keep an eye on all your moles.  Also at higher risk are people who are very fair skinned, those with fair or red hair and people with a lot of freckles. People with darker skins can still get melanoma but they have more natural protection against it.  So to make sure that you stay safe while you enjoy being out in the sun, make sure you slap on that sun screen. 

Amanda Thomas

UK Health Radio Medical News Update

Kindly sponsored by 1-stop –health-shop.com