Skin cancer Lots of shade and cream

Skin cancer: a lot of shade and cream can protect

06/18/2014

In Germany, more and more people are suffering from skin cancer. By 2050, experts are predicting an increase in new cases by seven percent annually. In terms of sun protection, there are still large gaps in knowledge.

Increase in new cases by seven percent annually
For many people in our latitudes, summertime means getting as much sun as possible outside. However, excessive UV radiation without adequate skin protection is by far the biggest risk factor for skin cancer, which is still one of the most common cancers in Germany. Experts expect 2050 even with an increase in new cases by seven percent annually. According to Prof. Eckhard Wilhelm Breitbart of the Working Group on Dermatological Prevention (ADP), short-term, sudden contact of the skin with very intense UV rays, such as during the Caribbean holiday, mainly promotes black skin cancer (malignant melanoma). Continuous UV exposure, as it has, for example, a road worker or farmer, is seen as the main cause of white skin cancer (spinal or basal cell carcinoma), it says in a dpa report.

Sunburns are especially dangerous
Particularly dangerous, especially in childhood, are sunburns. But even excessive UV exposure without sunburn can lead to skin damage and skin cancer. In addition, the risk increases due to certain individual factors such as fair skin, large congenital moles or many acquired liver spots. However, according to Breitbart, many people are still wrong when it comes to UV protection: „The biggest mistakes are that the length of stay in the sun is calculated incorrectly and one relies first on a sunscreen.“ One only needs to achieve the protective effect stated on the packaging, two milligrams of sunscreen per square centimeter of skin. For a family of three to four, one bottle of sunscreen would be needed per day. That's the equivalent of one bottle of sunscreen a day for a family of three to four.

Avoid midday sun as much as possible
Correctly protected are therefore only those who reduce the UV radiation to a level tolerated by the skin and avoid the sun, especially in times of very high UV intensity. So you should better not be on the beach or in the sun during the hours between eleven and three o'clock, as in the time about 80 to 90 percent of the dangerous UV radiation go down. For the rest of the time in addition to the sunscreen only sun-dressed clothes with headgear and sunglasses granted protection. Babies and toddlers should not be exposed to direct sunlight.

Protection needed even in overcast skies
As the Federal Association of German Dermatologists (BVDD) already announced last year, even with cloudy skies, up to 80 percent of UV radiation still reached the ground. Therefore, the sunscreen should also be considered here. In addition, special features should be considered, such as that light sand and water reflect the light increasingly, which leads to an increased risk of sunburn on the beach. In addition to UV protection, there is also room for improvement in early detection. Admittedly, with the free skin cancer screening for insured persons over the age of 35 years, it was possible to discover more and more skin cancers at an earlier stage. „But we still see a lot of cases in which the skin cancer disease is already advanced. Women tend to come more often than men“, said Lucie Heinzerling, Head of the Melanoma Outpatient Department at the Skin Cancer Center of the University of Erlangen. Basically, the benefits of such investigations, however, is controversial and so demanded President of Physicians Montgomery only last month, a review of the screening tests offered in Germany.

Intense UV radiation during long-distance travel
Skin cancer is considered very well curable in the early stages. However, this chance is dwindling very fast, especially in black skin cancer. „Malignant melanoma often grows quickly and forms metastases very early“, so the researcher. Even younger people sometimes showed melanoma in advanced stages. „I advise my patients to go to skin cancer screening every year, especially patients who have many or noticeable liver spots, so that all changes can be detected at an early stage“, according to the established dermatologist Frank Latzke in the Bavarian Alzenau. One could turn to a doctor for a screening to his family doctor or a dermatologist. From Latzke's point of view also the changed leisure behavior is substantially responsible for the increase of skin cancer illnesses. For example, young people are exposed to intense UV radiation at an early age due to long-distance travel. It is now more common that he already diagnose white skin cancer with them, which usually occurs later. (Ad)