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Men’s Skin Care–May is skin cancer awareness month: Beauty & Style Channel Theme Day

by Tris Hussey on May 18th, 2008

May, if you didn’t know, is skin cancer awareness month. Since it’s also the beginning of the summer season, when many of us tend to expose more skin to the Sun, I thought we should cover skin cancer a bit.

In fact the bulk of this post is a guest post from Sarah Scrafford, RN:

May we be aware of skin cancer!

Dying of cancer is probably the last thing on your mind as you’re lying sunbathing on that perfect beach, enjoying the sunshine and the calm of the deep blue sea. Little do you know that harmful Ultra Violet (UV) rays from the sun are weaving the tentacles of the dreaded disease into your skin even as you drift off to a peaceful slumber. But it’s time you woke up to the facts - direct exposure to harsh sunlight literally kills.

More than a million Americans are diagnosed with skin cancer every year, a number higher than the sum of breast, colon, lung, uterus, prostrate, ovaries and pancreatic cancers. In other words, skin cancer and melanoma (a rarer form of skin cancer that causes the most deaths) make up nearly half of all the types of cancers diagnosed. There’s an irony in these figures though, because skin cancer is one of the types of cancer that we can prevent by taking a few sensible precautions.

More and more people are dying of skin cancer each year, simply because the level of awareness about the disease is not high enough. This month of May, the American Cancer Society is dedicating its efforts to spread the word that skin cancer is reaching far and wide and is probably knocking on your door even as you read this, unless you wake up and limit your time in the sunshine.

May is an ideal choice for “Skin cancer awareness month” simply because it’s the time when people seek out the sun’s company and want to spend more time outdoors. The flowers are blooming, the weather’s fine, and it’s a perfect day to spend outdoors, or so you think. In reality, UV radiation is a possibility waiting to happen unless you protect yourself, more so if you’re a man since the male of the species is more susceptible to the disease. Here’s how you can make sure you don’t fall prey to skin cancer or melanoma:

• As much as possible, do not go out in the sun between 11 am and 4 pm, the time when the UV radiation is the harshest.
• If you do, lather on sunscreen lotion or cream with an SPF (Sun Protection Factor) of at least 30. Reapply as often as needed, every two hours or so if you’re sweating profusely or if you’ve been in the pool.
• Wear sensible clothing, preferably dark colored garments that cover your skin completely.
• Make sure the nape of your neck, your ears and your legs are covered – these and the back are the areas that skin cancer targets the most.
• Steer clear of tanning salons – they are every bit as harmful as direct exposure to sunlight.
• Wear a hat or cap – headgear not only prevents direct exposure to the sun, it also protects against sun strokes.
• Limit the glare from the harsh rays of the sun with sunglasses that block out 99 to 100 percent of UV rays.

A smaller percentage of the number of skin cancer instances is caused by hereditary factors and not due to exposure to UV radiation.

This article is contributed by Sarah Scrafford, who regularly writes on the topic of Care Plans. She invites your questions and writing job opportunities at her personal email address: sarah.scrafford25 [at] gmail[at] com

Here is a tip I heard on the radio: if your shadow is shorter than you are, it’s time to get into the shade (or at least crank up the sunscreen a notch or three).

Regardless, building on Sarah’s great contribution is something I saw on The Derm Blog: Eight Steps to a Self Skin Exam | The Derm Blog.

Personally I’ve been making sure I use aftershave balm with sun block lately. Lord knows my winter pallor isn’t quite ready for the Sun.

Why is this so important to me?

Cancer has touched my life profoundly. My father died of complications from Cancer when I was 22. My mother recently has had cancer (looking good so far). Finally a close cousin of mine died of skin cancer.

So, yeah. This is hugely important to me. So important that I’m dedicating most of June to help (and ride along with) the Sears National Kids Cancer Ride across Canada. You can follow along as I journey (in the vans btw) on the Rider’s blog and my personal SNKCR blog.

If you live in Canada and would like to help…you can come be a part of one of the shorter local stage rides. Heck, I might even get a bike by then and join you.

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POSTED IN: Beauty & Style Theme Day, Skin care for men