Skin Cancer Awareness Month: Sun Safety and Tackling Diagnosis
Source: Targeted Oncology, May 2024
For Melanoma and Skin Cancer Awareness Month, Nayoung Lee, MD, discussed evolving paradigms in skin cancer diagnosis and prevention.
May is Skin Cancer and Melanoma Awareness Month and even as awareness of skin cancer grows, the incidence continues to rise. Nonmelanoma skin cancers, including basal cell and squamous cell carcinoma, affect more than 3 million Americans each year,1 and the American Cancer Society estimates that about 100,000 new melanomas will be diagnosed in 2024.
Further, skin cancer poses a disproportionate risk in Black patients vs White patients with melanoma as 5-year survival rates are 70% compared with 94%. Additionally, melanoma in patients of color typically occurs in areas that get little sun exposure.