One of the most commonly encountered types of cancer nowadays is skin cancer, or more accurately, the three cancers associated with the skin since there are three major types of skin cancer.
The commonest and least harmful is what is known as a rodent ulcer ( or basal cell carcinoma). Then we see a skin cancer called Squamous cell carcinoma. Finally we come to what I would have to say is the most recognized type of skin cancer referred to as malignant melanoma. This is the most deadly but mercifully also the rarest type of skin cancer.
Whilst malignant melanoma is rare, since it is the most harmful, it is worth taking a quick look at just what it is. This particular sort of cancer is responsible for more or less one percent of cancers and is a tumor in the cells which creat melanin and which are known as melancytes. Melanin is the pigment that creates your sun tan and which gives your skin the color it has usually. It is also the agent that accounts for the color of your hair and eyes which means that malignant melanoma can also affect the eyes as well as the skin.
It is comforting to learn that at least for now skin melanomas are very rare in children but, since half of all the sun exposure which the skin gets happens before the age of 18 and, due to the time it takes to grow, it is crucial to prevent your kids from getting sunburn.
As a consequence of growing pollution, the reducing ozone layer and greater knowledge about what ultra violet rays can really do, there is a growing recognition that exposure to the sun can be extremely bad for us and that we need to protect ourselves from these ultra violet rays. It is a simple fact that that it is the sun that is bringing about these problems because the number of people having skin cancer varies based on country. For example, tropical countries which have large Caucasian populations have the highest incidence of skin cancer. Countries like South Africa and Australia, as well as the southern American states, which have a lot of sunshine and Caucasian populations demonstrate levels of skin cancer that are directly proportionate with the amount of sunlight and the size of the Caucasian population.
Deeper skin types such as those seen in individuals who have an African American or Asian background receive improved protection from the sunlight by reason of their darker skin color.
Ultra violet light is part of the sunshine and it is that element which produces the problem. UV light comes in different forms although they are all basically bad for light skin and in particular for babies and children who are greatly at risk because their skin is thinner than adults.
Over the past 40 years the instances of skin cancer have doubled every 10 years. This coincides with the introduction of lower priced vacations to sunnier parts of the world and now that such vacations are so widely available and sunbathing has become such a popular activity, skin cancer cases will continue this rise unless individuals begin to take the required precautions to stop themselves from getting burnt by the hot ultra violet rays from the sun.
SkinCancerFacts.org offers answers to a range of questions about skin cancer and is a perfect skin cancer resource center for people affected by or worried about this problem.
