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Although skin cancer is not nearly as fatal in today’s world than say 20 years ago, the disease still claims around 2,600 lives in the UK alone. So remember before stepping out of the front door this summer, top up on the sunscreen. It could be saving your life without you even realizing it.
There are two main types of skin cancer non-melanoma and malignant melanoma, the first being very common throughout the UK. Although the number of deaths from the non-melanoma related cancers is minimal compared to that of the malignant melanoma. Of a study conducted in 2005 by Cancer Research UK, out of the 76,596 cases of non-melanoma cancer reported, only 577 were fatal. With most of these cases being linked to patients over the age of 70. However the mortality rate connected to malignant melanoma cases is significantly higher. The number of cases reported was only 9,583 however, the mortality rate was as high as 2,042 and in most of the cases, and the patient was under the age of 70.
It’s pretty much common knowledge that the sun, or more specifically the ultra violet (UV) rays that are emitted from that big glowing ball up in the sky, are the main cause of skin cancer. This is why solariums are heavily frowned upon by the medical world, as the bulbs in sun beds produce dangerous levels of UV light. Pro longed exposure to UV rays can cause mutation in the skin cells, which in turn produces the cancerous cells.
The sad truth of the matter is that hundreds of these cancer cases could have been prevented, just be taking simple precautions. Firstly remember sun beds are bad! Spending a healthy amount of time in the sun will give anyone the glowing summer effect that many of us desire. If you’re desperate to change your skin tone quickly, then there are plenty of options available to you this day in age. L’Oreal or Clarins self tanning products for example will give a stunning finish to your skin for men and women.
If you are travelling abroad this year, remember although you may be getting a cool breeze coming in off the sea and the clouds are overcast. That this is not an excuse to skimp on the sun cream; UV rays can still penetrate the clouds so make sure covering your exposed areas becomes a habit. Despite all the waterproof sun creams that are available today, it is still recommended that these be reapplied every couple of hours or so, as some of it will be washed away while enjoying the pool or the sea.
If your not going on holiday this year, don’t think for a minute that the sun in the UK is any less harmful than it is in other countries. It is the same sun after all. Burn time in the UK can be as little as 10 minutes, which means even if your just pottering around in the garden, sun cream should be applied.
Another thing people are aware of, however pay little or no attention too, is that UV rays can severely damage our eyes. Which is a brilliant excuse to get a new pair of sunnies on the go. Sunglasses are a major fashion item to most people, not only are there thousands upon thousands of shades available on the market today. The majority of them will protect your eyes 100% from the harmful UV rays of the sun. Style and safety going hand in hand, now that’s not something you see every day.
So remember if your going on holiday or not this year, UV protection is vital in protecting against any form of skin cancer. Loosing a friend or relative to cancer is one of the hardest things in life, to have to watch as cells mutate and destroy the body bit by bit is one of the most horrific experiences that anybody will have to go through. The most painful thing is knowing that the original invasion of the body started with the initial skin cancer, the skin cancer itself could have been avoided if the person in question had taken a few more precautions to protect their skin from the harmful UV rays, that are the major cause of skin cancer.
If you would like more information regarding skin or any other type of cancer, then check out Cancer Research UK’s home page.
