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1st
appeared 20 April 1999
UCSF Sponsors Free Skin Cancer Screening on
Saturday, May 15
The UCSF Department of Dermatology, part of UCSF Stanford Health Care, will host free skin
cancer screenings from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, May 15, on the third floor of the
UCSF/Mount Zion Medical Office Building, 1701 Divisadero St.
Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the United States, with about one million
new cases diagnosed each year. The most serious type of skin cancer -- malignant melanoma
-- will kill approximately 7,300 people this year, according to statistics from the
American Academy of Dermatology.
"Skin cancers, including melanoma, can be more easily treated if detected
early," said Janellen Smith, UCSF assistant clinical professor of dermatology and
coordinator of the UCSF screening day. "Yet most Americans don't know the warning
signs of melanoma, and only a third examine their skin for signs of skin cancer."
To increase public awareness of the signs of skin cancer and to encourage behaviors to
protect the skin from damage, UCSF is teaming up with the San Francisco Dermatology
Society, American Academy of Dermatology, and the American Cancer Society to hold the
screening.
UCSF and community dermatologists will participate in the screening and will provide
informational material on self-examination for skin cancer. For more information about the
screening, or to make an appointment, please call 415/353-7800.
Facts About Skin Cancer:
About 75 percent of the all skin cancers will be
basal cell carcinoma and 20 percent will be squamous cell carcinoma.
Both basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell
carcinoma, two types of nonmelanoma skin cancer, have a better than 95 percent cure rate
if detected and treated early. About 1,900 people will die of nonmelanoma skin cancer in
1999.
Melanoma accounts for about four percent of skin
cancer cases, but 79 percent of skin cancer deaths.
The number of new cases of melanoma diagnosed in the
United States is increasing.
Since 1973, the rate of new cases of melanoma
diagnosed has doubled from 6 per 100,000 to 12 per 100,000.
In 1999, there will be an estimated 44,200 new cases
of melanoma (25,800 men and 18,400 women) in the US. Approximately 7,300 people (4,600 men
and 2,700 women) in the United States are expected to die of melanomas during this year.
Melanoma is more common than any non-skin cancer
among people between 25 and 29 years old.
Links:
UCSF press release with
Melanoma Q&A
UCSF Dermatology
UCSF Stanford Health Care
Related Daybreak stories:
Testing Therapy to Thwart
Melanoma
Don't Forget the Sunscreen
Source: Lordelyn P. del Rosario,
News Services |
