Club Meeting – July 3rd, 2014

meinhart 070314“Burn Me Once, Shame on You…Burn me Twice, Shame on Me”

Our own Michele Meinhart, FNP-C, CEO Elderderm, LLC reminded us to be mindful of the damage ultraviolet light from the sun can inflict on our skin.  The negative results from exposure to the sun’s ray are cumulative over your life time.  Harmful sun burns early in life can increase the chances of developing skin cancers in your adult years.

Michele shared statistics which caught our members attention.  Not many of us knew the rate of skin cancer is the highest of all cancers in the United States or that melanoma skin cancer is the #1 cause of death by cancer in young adults. The rate of melanoma has tripled over the last 20 years.  You have a less than 10% chance of surviving 5 years if melanomas are not caught early.  As a matter of course, tanning spas should be avoided.

Know your body.  Especially if you have fair skin, 50 or more moles, and a weak immune system.  Remember the A, B, C, D, & E of skin cancer detection.

  • Asymmetry- compare sides
  • Border- irregular or jagged
  • Color- dark or varied
  • Diameter- larger than a pencil eraser
  • Evolving Lesions- changing

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Graphic courtesy of Elderderm, LLC