MIAMI, (Ivanhoe Newswire) - While the rates of most types of cancer were on the way down, melanoma was one exception. Seventy-thousand new cases of melanoma have been diagnosed every year, and 10,000 people die from it. Most can be prevented by cutting exposure to the sun’s harmful ultraviolet rays and some communities across the country are supplying outdoor lovers with one proven weapon against skin cancer.
Miami Beach is perfect for lovers of surf, sand and sun. For Edward Cassidy and Teresa Jimenez, it was a great place to spend an extra vacation day.
Jimenez told Ivanhoe, “Our luggage got stuck in the airport, so we didn’t have anything, we had to go buy a bathing suit, and we didn’t have any sunscreen so that’s perfect.”
Edward and Teresa happened to be on the first beach in the country to provide sunscreen free in large, marked dispensers.
Jose Lutzky, MD, Hematologist/Oncologist at The Mount Sinai Comprehensive Cancer Center in Miami told Ivanhoe, “Sunscreens, the good ones, are expensive and I think that actually plays a role in a lot of people not using sunscreens.”
Dr. Lutzky said sunscreen was essential for protection against harmful ultraviolet rays. “It has to be a sunscreen that has protection against ultraviolet A and ultraviolet B,” he explained.
The sunscreen in the dispensers has both types of protection, an SPF of 30 and they’re waterproof, designed to Submitprotect for 80 minutes.
Gavin Pratt spent his teens and 20’s basking in the sun, unprotected. Pratt told Ivanhoe, “I used to rollerblade a lot. I used to be in the sun. I loved to go to the beach.”
At 37, he’s being treated for melanoma. Dr. Lutzky said with rates of this cancer increasing, putting sunscreen in public places could be a good preventive start.
The dispensers in Miami Beach were funded by Mount Sinai Medical Center. In addition to Miami, the city of Boston has installed lotion dispensers in parks and Dr. Lutzky says other cities in the U.S. and Canada have called to inquire about the program.
BACKGROUND: Melanoma is the most dangerous form of skin cancer to date as it kills an estimated 9,710 people in the U.S. a year. The American Cancer Society estimates that 120,000 new cases of melanoma in the United States are also diagnosed within a year. Melanoma is a cancerous growth that develops when unrepaired DNA causes damage to skin cells. This damage triggers mutations that cause the skin cells to multiply rapidly and form malignant tumors. Melanoma is most frequently caused by intense, occasional UV exposure but it can also be genetic. Most often melanoma resembles a mole, or it may develop from a mole. The majority of melanomas are black or brown, but they can also appear as skin-colored, pink, red, purple, blue or white. If melanoma is recognized and treated at an early stage, it is almost always curable. If the cancer is advanced and spreads to other parts of the body, it can be fatal. Source
WARNING SIGNS OF MELANOMA: Even if you use sunscreen and practice sun safety it is still important to examine your skin year around. Once a month you should look for any suspicious lesions that could point to melanoma or any other skin condition. Physicians have developed two specific strategies for early recognition of the disease: the ABCDEs and the Ugly Duckling sign.
A- Asymmetrical: If the mole is asymmetrical it is a warning sign for melanoma.
B- Border: the borders of an early melanoma tend to be uneven.
C- Color: if a mole is a variety of colors it may be melanoma.
D- Diameter: if a mole is larger in diameter than the eraser on your pencil tip it may be cancerous.
E- Evolving: benign moles look the same over time, but if a mole starts to evolve or change in size, shape, color or elevation, see a doctor.
The Ugly Duckling sign: this is when one mole sticks out in a group of moles. Source
NEW IDEAS: Melanoma, the most serious type of skin cancer, will account for more than 73,000 cases of skin cancer in 2015. As a part of a commitment to improving the health and well-being of the community and its visitors, a free sunscreen dispenser initiative funded by Mount Sinai Medical Center in Miami Beach, Florida was installed. The dispensers were a gift to the city’s residents and visitors in celebration of the city’s centennial anniversary. Florida is second, behind California in incidences of melanoma, which is why the free dispensers will make a huge difference. People may be more inclined to protecting themselves if the lotion is free. This initiative has prompted other cities throughout the country to use Mount Sinai as a model for implementing this in their own respective cities. Mount Sinai has installed 50 free sunscreen dispensers in various locations on the beach fronts near lifeguard stands as well as at public pools and parks. (Source: Mount Sinai Press Release, Joseph Lutzky, MD)
For More Information, Contact:
Joanna Palmer
305-674-2589
Joanna.palmer@msmc.com
