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Altruist
It is our mission to reduce the incidence of skin cancer through the increased use of quality sunscreen together with better education and awareness.
- Most common of all cancers
- Divided in to melanoma and non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC)
- Basal cell carcinomas (BCCs) – usually slow growing – most commonly on head and neck. Almost never spread. Can be cured by surgery.
- Squamous cell carcinomas (SCCs) – develop on sun exposed areas; can be cured if treated early (usually surgically). May spread if high risk type.
- Melanoma is a potentially dangerous type; often develop on areas with intermittent sun exposure that have been sunburnt (e.g. men’s backs). Can be cured if caught early. New research is offering hope to those with metastatic disease.
Risks for skin cancer
- Chronic ultraviolet radiation exposure
- Pale skin
- Skin cancer in the family
- Multiple/ unusual moles
- Severe sunburn
- Weakened immune system
- Prevents UV radiation reaching the skin
- UVB (ultraviolet radiation) causes sunburn (and also enables vitamin D production)
- UVA causes wrinkles, brown spots (photoageing)
- Both UVB and UVA can contribute to the development of skin cancer
SPF = Sun Protection Factor (the number of times longer you can stay in the sun before burning compared to wearing no sunscreen) indicates UVB protection
The amount of UVB radiation that is filtered out varies with different SPFs:
- SPF 15 blocks 93% of UVB;
- SPF 30 blocks 96.7% of UVB;
- SPF 50 blocks 98.3% of UVB.
