Moles and Skin Cancer: The Real Story

This is an excellent article about moles and whether or not that by removing moles you can reduce the risk of melanoma. Most people know that melanoma and moles are related, but the real facts are below

Does Removing Moles Reduce the Risk of Developing Melanoma?
By Stephen Wassall


A common misconception is that removing moles reduces melanoma risk.

There is no doubt that having a lot of moles increases the risk of developing melanoma. However, melanoma experts now believe that it is impossible to predict which moles will turn malignant. In other words, we know which patients are at higher risk, but not necessarily which moles are at greatest risk.


Consider this:-
1. Many people believe that all melanomas come from moles. In fact, only around 40% of melanomas arise from moles - the rest develop in normal skin.
2. The lifetime risk of a benign mole turning into a melanoma is somewhere between 1 in 3000 to 1 in 10 000.

Therefore, the removing of benign moles is unnecessary. It has a negligible impact on reducing your melanoma risk. Even if every mole on your body was removed you would only halve your risk because 60% of melanomas don't come from moles. The lifetime risk of a woman developing breast cancer is about 1 in 14. We wouldn't consider removing breasts to reduce the risk of cancer. Why would we remove a mole that has a risk of 1 in 3000 or less?


Dysplastic Moles
There is a type of mole known as a dysplastic mole which deserves special consideration. Dysplastic moles tend to be larger and more irregular than most moles. About 20% of the population will have one or more of these moles. Traditionally dysplastic moles were considered to be at higher risk of turning into melanoma. However, recent studies have suggested that the lifetime risk of a dysplastic mole becoming a melanoma is less than 1 in 1000.

There is good evidence that people who have more than 5 dysplastic moles are at higher risk of developing melanoma. However, that is not to say that it will necessarily be one of the dysplastic moles which will turn into melanoma. Melanoma experts now believe that people with multiple dysplastic moles have a predisposition to abnormal melanin production in their skin which increases the risk of developing melanoma at any site - not just within the dysplastic moles. Removing the dysplastic moles has a small impact on reducing risk of melanoma.

In reality, melanoma diagnosis is a skill that can only be developed with expertise and experience. Various factors need to be taken into consideration eg. recent change in a mole, previous history of melanoma or a family history. In addition, many people have a particular type of mole pattern - almost like a fingerprint. A particular type of mole may look perfectly benign and normal on one patient and totally out of place on another. Therefore, the decision to remove a mole is based on many variables.

However, the facts still remain. There should be a good clinical reason to remove a mole. Mole removal does have potential complications such as bleeding, infection and significant scarring.


Recommendations


In summary, my recommendations are as follows:
1. People at risk should have an annual skin check.
2. After a thorough examination moles which have diagnostic criteria for melanoma are removed. In skilled hands, 92% of melanomas can be diagnosed on initial examination.
3. Suspicious moles with no definite features of melanoma should be photographed and rechecked in 3 months. If they change they are removed. This includes moles that the patient has noticed change in but look benign clinically.
4. People with multiple dysplastic moles should be checked every 6 months and have long-term photographing and monitoring of their suspicious moles.





Dr Stephen Wassall has a Masters Degree in Primary Care Skin Cancer Medicine and is a Member of the Australasian Society of Cosmetic Medicine. He offers an integrated Skin Cancer and Cosmetic Facial Rejuvenation service performed with high professional and ethical standards. He practices on the Central Coast of NSW, Australia. As well as performing melanoma and skin cancer screening and treatment he also performs non-surgical procedures including wrinkle injections, chemical peels and dermal fillers as well as offering prescription strength skin rejuvenation products.


http://www.SkinIntegrity.com.au

Indoor tanning linked to anxiety, substance abuse

Indoor tanning linked to anxiety, substance abuse

By Jonathan Prince

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Published: Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Updated: Tuesday, April 27, 2010
University of Arizona tanning

A study published by the Archives of Dermatology showed a correlation between indoor tanning and addiction, suggesting that those who frequent tanning beds show tendencies to use alcohol and marijuana.

The popular fashion statement of bronzed skin is a growing trend these days, researchers have found this golden-fried look can lead to a dangerous indoor tanning addiction.

A recent study published in the April edition of Archives of Dermatology suggested that people who frequently use indoor tanning beds also have more tendencies to use alcohol and marijuana than those who do not.

Thirty-nine percent of the students surveyed who have tanned indoors showed signs of having an addiction to tanning. Students who showed addictive tendencies to indoor tanning also showed a greater use of alcohol and marijuana.

More than 400 college students from a university in the northeastern part of the country participated in a month-long study assessing the correlation between addiction and indoor tanning. Each participant filled out a questionnaire that included questions about their demographics, frequency of indoor tanning and how often they use substances like tobacco, alcohol and marijuana. After completing the questionnaire, each participant was screened for alcoholism and substance-related disorders. The participants also participated in a self-evaluation measuring their levels of anxiety and depression.

“I think indoor tanning is dumb, “ said Allyson Lewis, an education freshman. “It’s obviously not real and it’s more dangerous. People fake and bake because it’s faster and easier. I think people can become addicted to tanning just like they can become addicted to shopping.”

When asked how Lewis maintains her luminous glow, she replied, “I don’t go tanning, I lay out. I like saying that it’s all natural. It’s like getting fake boobs, no one wants to admit that it’s not real.”

Drs. Catherine E. Mosher, of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, and Sharon Danoff-Burg of the State University at Albany in New York, administered the study. They used the Cut Down, Annoyed, Guilty, Eye-opener method and the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders to create criteria for addiction. These methods are commonly used in the medical and psychological fields to diagnose an individual with anxiety, depression or other substance-related disorders.

Researchers hypothesized that frequent exposure to UV light results in a behavioral pattern related to alcoholism and substance abuse. Other studies on UV light have determined it enables relaxation, improved moods and increased socialization. These effects of tanning can fuel students’ desire for more indoor tanning.

Heather Hiscox, a program development coordinator at the Skin Cancer Institute at the Arizona Cancer Center, said, “People that tan before the age of 30 have a 70 percent increased chance of getting melanoma skin cancer.”

Hiscox did not want to comment on the behavioral issues associated with the study because she did not have the time to fully read the study.

“I’ve worked with people that knew tanning was putting them at risk and they still could not stop,” she said. “The results and data are very interesting.”

Two workers from Hollywood Tans, a tanning salon located on University Boulevard, refused to comment because company policy dictates that workers are not allowed to speak to the press.

Researchers suggest that skin cancer interventions inform these “tanorexic” individuals of the addictive qualities of indoor tanning and the correlation to substance-related disorders.

Skin Cancer Information

Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the United States.  The two most common types of skin cancer—basal cell and squamous cell carcinomas—are highly curable.  However, melanoma, the third most common skin cancer, is more dangerous, especially among young people.  Research shows that most skin cancers can be prevented if people are protected from UV light. 

Malignant melanomas are the least common but most serious type of skin cancer, with more than 10,400 new cases diagnosed in 2006.  In 2006 over 81,600 non-melanoma skin cancers (NMSC) were registered in the UK but registration is known to be incomplete.  Almost a third (31%) of all cases occur in people aged less than 50 years and in the age-group 15-34 malignant melanoma is the most common cancer (when NMSCs are excluded). 

This is an unusually young age distribution for an adult cancer and emphasises the importance of its prevention and early treatment to avert the potential loss of many years of life.  The Cancer Atlas of the UK and Ireland, which analysed rates at local authority and health board level, showed that male and female melanoma incidence rates have a very similar geographical distribution.  In the UK, the national skin cancer prevention programme, SunSmart, is run by Cancer Research UK and mainly funded by the UK Departments of Health.

What are the treatments for skin cancer?

There are 4 main treatments for skin cancer. The main treatment is surgery. For most people, this is the only treatment they have to have. Often it is a day surgery, with just a local aesthetic. The area is completely removed, and the patient has a short recovery period. Most squamous cell cancers and basal cell cancers are totally curable with surgery.

Of course, there is not just one are different types of surgical techniques that are used depending upon the size of the cancer, the type of cancer, the stage of the cancer, and where the cancer is located.

For a wider or spreading cancer, you could be put under a general anaesthetic. This is because of the possibility of you needing a skin flap, which is a thicker piece of skin tissue with it’s own blood supply that is removed from another part of the body and used, or a skin graft can be taken.

For treatment and diagnosis of skin cancer, your doctor will probably refer you to a dermatologist, unless you have a large surface area of cancer or it is in an awkward spot to remove. If this is the case, you will be referred to a plastic surgeon

The doctor will often take out lymph nodes that are close to the cancer. This is often done as a preventive measure, so even if there is no sign of cancer, your doctor will usually insist that they are removed. Remember, even a few cancer cells can turn into tumours further down the line

Radiotherapy can also used to treat skin cancers if sugury is not suitable. It is usually used if the cancer covers a large area, or is on an area that is hard to operate on, or if there are reasons why the patient should not have surgery, i.e.: Radiotherapy is also given after surgery to lessen the chances of the cancer returning, and to treat recurred cancers after they were first treated with surgery

Chemotherapy is also used in the treatment of skin cancer. It can be taken as tablets or injections when used to treat skin cancers that are on the top layer of the skin and to treat actinic keratosis. Chemotherapy tablets or injections are only used for skin cancers that have spread. This treatment is mostly used to relieve symptoms in cancers that cannot be cured. This is still considered experimental treatment with ongoing clinical trials.

Photodynamic therapy or PTD is a new type of treatment using light, and is used as an alternative to surgery. Although there is not enough evidence that it controls the spread of squamous cell skin cancer, with too high a risk of the cancer returning, there is evidence that it is useful for several types of skin cancer. Photodynamic therapy using a cream is now available for use for Bowen's disease, actinic keratosis (also known as solar keratosis) and basal cell skin cancers. It is recommended that Photodynamic therapy is best used where the patient would need extensive surgery, so this is best for large, shallow skin cancers, or where there are multiple cancers in the area of concern. This being said, Photodynamic therapy is not used for deeper skin cancers because the light cannot penetrate far enough into the skin. In studies, Photodynamic therapy improved the appearance of the area treated better than surgery. In trials, Photodynamic therapy was as good as surgery in controlling actinic keratosis, basal cells and Bowen's disease in these trials.

I recently finished an excellent book on alternative cancer treatments called Natural Cancer Treatments That Work. The information in this book could help. There are over 350 gentle, non toxic treatments for cancer that nobody else will tell you about. Thousands of people have successfully used the alternative cancer treatments that are in this book.