It’s hard to resist the urge to spend as much time as possible outside on a bright summer day, but medical experts say it’s important to maintain skin safety while enjoying that warm sunshine.
Over time, unprotected exposure to the sun’s UVA and UVB rays can damage skin and lead to DNA mutations that cause skin cancer, said Dr. Vincent Ma, a medical oncologist who specializes in advanced skin cancer, offers advice on how best to protect your body’s largest organ.
The three main categories of skin cancer are basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma and melanoma. Basal cell is the most common type, followed by squamous cell. Both can be effectively treated when caught early, Ma said.
Melanoma is the deadliest type of skin cancer because of its ability to grow quickly and spread to other parts of the body. Ma said the vast majority of melanoma that is caught early can be treated effectively with surgery.
Advanced-stage melanoma treatment is more intensive, but patient outlook has improved significantly in the past decade thanks to advances in immunotherapy. This treatment harnesses methods to reinvigorate the patient’s immune system to fight cancer cells.
There are many easy ways to keep your skin safe, Ma said. The most effective is to avoid spending a lot of time in the sun during the hours of 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., when the sun’s rays are strongest. Find shade whenever possible to avoid direct exposure.
For the times you will be out in the sun doing activities, Ma urges diligent use of sunscreen.
Sunscreen use is an especially important habit to start with children, even though they aren’t always cooperative about it.
Sunglasses and a wide brim hat also can help shield your vulnerable face and neck. Men also need to be conscious of covering thinning or bald areas of their scalp, either with a hat or sunscreen.
"We should be applying reapplying sunscreen every two hours if possible, and for when you're doing very strenuous activities such as sweating or even swimming," Ma said. "We usually recommend even up to an hour reapplying every hour with sunscreen."
There are also many options of long-sleeve lightweight clothing for both kids and adults, to give extra coverage on arms, shoulders and chest.
Ma says while people with lighter skin and hair tone are most at risk of sun damage, people of every skin tone are susceptible to skin cancer and need to take precautions.
"Skin cancer can affect all individuals," he said. "You know, we commonly think of the disease as affecting mostly fair skinned or Caucasians but we are seeing increasing rates and rise of skin cancer across different races, including African Americans, Hispanics and Asian Americans in the United States."
For those vacationing in tropical places close to the equator, wearing sunscreen and protective clothing is even more important. The sun’s rays are stronger in those regions, which puts you at a higher risk of severe blistering sunburn.
"Individuals who have a lot of a sunburns as a child also increase the risk of melanoma," Ma said. "So there was a recent statistic that showed that more than five sunburns as a child or an adolescent, more than doubles your risk of melanoma."
Ma says people should keep a close eye on their skin to look for any new, questionable spots or changes to existing moles. The acronym ABCDE—asymmetrical, border, color, diameter (greater than 6 mm) and evolution—helps you remember the details to pay attention to for both new and existing moles.
"Some of the main risk factors that are unavoidable would be, again, fair skin are Caucasian individuals," he said. "People who have greater than 100 moles or freckles on the body actually increases your risk of skin cancer. Individuals who are blond hair or are redheads are also at risk. And individuals with blue eyes and green eyes also have a slight increased risk of skin cancer as well."
If your family has a history of skin cancer, it’s even more important to be vigilant and look for questionable skin spots, Ma said.
