$Unique_ID{BRK00662}
$Pretitle{}
$Title{Do I Have to Worry About Melanoma?}
$Subject{cancer cancers carcinoma cancerous neoplasm neoplasms melanoma Skin
mole moles sun exposure hair eye color}
$Volume{B-20}
$Log{}

Copyright (c) 1991-92,1993   Tribune Media Services, Inc.


Do I Have to Worry About Melanoma?


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QUESTION:  I'm a young white woman with a lot of little colored blemishes.  I
have been reading some scary stuff about skin cancers that I am afraid might
apply to me.  Do I have to worry about the skin cancer melanoma?

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ANSWER:  Unfortunately, you do.  Studies in Scotland of 180 subjects age 15 to
84 have shown that the risk of melanoma is strongly related to the total
number of moles on your body.  (The doctors in the study counted only moles
that were larger than 2 millimeters in diameter).  Even after the researchers
adjusted their findings to include the known risk factors for melanoma--skin
type, sun exposure, hair and eye color--the relative risk of getting melanoma
for a patient with more than 50 moles was 53.9.  (The relative risk for
subjects with 25 to 49 moles was 10.7; for subjects with 10 to 24 moles, 6.7.)
     Other risk factors for melanoma include having moles that are larger than
7 millimeters in diameter, and are multicolored or irregularly shaped.  Moles
that grow rapidly or seem to be changing color and shape may also be
cancerous, and require immediate attention.
     So if you have a lot of moles, see a dermatologist regularly.  It is one
way of keeping a careful check on yourself and relieving a bit of your natural
and understandable anxiety.

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The material contained here is "FOR INFORMATION ONLY" and should not replace
the counsel and advice of your personal physician.  Promptly consulting your
doctor is the best path to a quick and successful resolution of any medical
problem.