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Assessing Skin Cancer Risk

Purpose: To understand the various factors that determines a person’s exposure to UV radiation.

Materials: UV maps, pencil, paper

Background: The ozone (3 oxygen atoms) layer acts like sunscreen for the Earth. It forms a protective shield of filter within the stratosphere which offers protection from UV radiation. During the 1970s, scientists discovered that human activities were destroying the ozone layer. Specifically, chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) were able to break apart at high altitudes into chlorine atoms. One free chlorine atom is able to destroy up to 10,000 ozone molecules.

The ozone layer is necessary for filtering UV radiation which comes in three forms. UV-A: necessary for synthesis of vitamin D, UV-B: harmful to most organisms and absorbed only by ozone, and UV-C: deadly but does not reach the Earth’s surface because it is absorbed by oxygen and ozone. UV-B radiation is responsible for causing certain types of skin cancers in humans. The American Academy of Dermatology predicts that 1 in 5 Americans will get skin cancer in their lifetime.

Certain types of skin are at greater risk for developing sun damage and skin cancer.  Do you know your skin type?  Check out our photos and descriptions to find the one that best matches your skin. Your skin type is one of the main factors in your risk for skin cancer.  There are six skin phototypes, going from light to dark.  Individuals with skin types I and II face the highest risk of developing skin cancer, while types V and VI are at the lowest risk.  That is because those with more pigmentation have more natural protection from the sun.  However, people with darker skin can nonetheless get skin cancer. Like light-skinned people, they should be cautious of the sun and have regular examinations by a doctor.

To get an idea of your degree of risk, rate yourself according to the following classification.

 

|Type I: You always burn and never tan in the sun. You are extremely susceptible to skin damage as well | |

|as cancers like basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma. You are also at very high risk for | |

|melanoma, the deadliest type of skin cancer. Generally follow The Skin Cancer Foundation’s prevention | |

|tips but use a sunscreen with a SPF of 30+ and clothing with a UPF rating of 30 or higher. Seek the | |

|shade whenever you are out in the sun. Check your skin head-to-toe each month, paying careful attention | |

|to any suspicious growths, and make sure you have an annual professional skin checkup. | |

|Type II: You almost always burn and rarely tan in the sun. You are highly susceptible to skin damage as | |

|well as cancers like basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma. You are also at high risk for | |

|melanoma, the deadliest type of skin cancer. Generally follow The Skin Cancer Foundation’s prevention | |

|tips but also consider using a sunscreen with a SPF of 30+ and clothing with a UPF rating of 30 or | |

|higher. Seek the shade whenever you are out in the sun. Check your skin head-to-toe each month, paying | |

|careful attention to any suspicious growths, and make sure you have an annual professional skin checkup.| |

|Type III: You sometimes burn and sometimes tan in the sun. You are susceptible to skin damage as well as| |

|cancers like basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma. You are also at risk for melanoma, the | |

|deadliest type of skin cancer. Be sure to apply a sunscreen with an SPF of at least 15 every day, wear | |

|sun-protective clothing, and seek the shade between 10 AM and 4 PM, when the sun is strongest. Check | |

|your skin head-to-toe each month, paying careful attention to any suspicious growths, and make sure you | |

|have an annual professional skin checkup. | |

|Type IV: You tend to tan easily and are less likely to burn. But you are still at risk; use sunscreen | |

|with an SPF of 15+ outside and seek the shade between 10 AM and 4 PM. Follow all other Prevention Tips | |

|from The Skin Cancer Foundation as well. Check your skin head-to-toe each month, paying careful | |

|attention to any suspicious growths, and make sure you have an annual professional skin checkup. | |

|Type V: You tan easily and rarely burn, but you are still at risk. Use sunscreen with an SPF of 15+ and | |

|seek the shade between 10 AM and 4 PM. Acral lentiginous melanoma, a very virulent form of the disease, | |

|is more common among darker-skinned people. These melanomas tend to appear on parts of the body not | |

|often exposed to the sun, and often remain undetected until after the cancer has spread. Check your skin| |

|head-to-toe each month, paying careful attention to any suspicious growths, and make sure you have an | |

|annual professional skin checkup. Keep an eye out for any suspicious growths, especially on the palms, | |

|soles of the feet and mucous membranes. | |

|Type VI: Although you do not burn, dark-skinned people are still at risk for skin cancers, and should | |

|wear sunscreen with a SPF of 15+ and seek the shade between 10 AM and 4 PM. Acral lentiginous melanoma, | |

|a very virulent form of the disease, is more common among darker-skinned people. These melanomas tend to|  |

|appear on parts of the body not often exposed to the sun, and often remain undetected until after the | |

|cancer has spread. Check your skin head-to-toe each month, paying careful attention to any suspicious | |

|growths, and make sure you have an annual professional skin checkup. Keep an eye out for any suspicious | |

|growths, especially on the palms, soles of the feet and mucous membranes. | |

In this activity, you will explore a person’s UV exposure in relation to employment and where a person lives. Also, you should think about skin cancer risk in relationship to skin type and determine if there are any other risk factors related to skin cancer besides ozone depletion.

Procedure: Imagine three different people who have different occupations, live in different cities and have different ethnic backgrounds and skin color. Based on how much time they spend outside, where they live and their skin type, they will each have different risks of skin caner. Using the information provided by the UV maps, answer the following questions:

1. Who would have a higher risk of skin cancer, an outdoor working living in London, or an outdoor worker living in Chile? Why?

2. Who would have a higher risk of skin cancer, an outdoor worker living in South India, or an outdoor working living in Tasmania (island off of Australia)? Why?

Now consider the following diagram:

Occupation:

Location:

Ethnicity:

Answer the following questions:

1. Indicate the combination (occupation, location and ethnicity) that would produce:

a. the highest risk of skin cancer, why?

b. the lowest risk of skin cancer, why?

2. Explain what a person who has a high risk for skin cancer could do to lower their risk.

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Office Worker

Fireman

Fisherman

Chile

London

Australia

Caucasian

Asian

Black

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