What is Melanoma?
Melanoma is a cancer that starts in a certain kind of skin cell. It is the most dangerous form of skin cancer and is the leading cause of death from skin disease. The disease is where cancer cells form in the skin cells called melanocytes. Melanocytes make melanin and give skin it's natural pigmentation. It can occur anywhere on the body and unusual moles, exposure to light, and health history can affect your risk for melanoma. Melanoma is most often caused from excessive exposure to the sun. Risk factors include: sunburn, fair skin, exposure to UV rays (ie. tanning beds), weak immune system, unusual/many moles, or a family history of melanoma. To help prevent melanoma, make sure to have annual checkups with a dermatologist and always protect yourself from the sun by wearing sunscreen!
All the proceeds from March for Melanoma will benefit the Melanoma Research Foundation. The MRF is a nonprofit organization dedicated to funding medical research towards treatments and cures for melanoma. They also strive to educate people about prevention, diagnosis, and treatments. 84% of the donations they recieve go to either research or education, making them one of the top most finacially responsible organizations in the country. To learn more you can visit their website.
Facts*:
-
One in five Americans will develop skin cancer in the course of a lifetime
-
Over the past three decades, more people have had skin cancer than all other cancers combined
-
Each year in the US, nearly 5 million people are treated for skin cancer.
-
One person dies of melanoma every hour (every 57 minutes)
-
An estimated 73,870 new cases of invasive melanoma will be diagnosed in the US in 2015
-
An estimated 9,940 people will die of melanoma in 2015
-
Melanoma accounts for six percent of cancer cases in teens 15-19 years old
-
Melanoma is the most common form of cancer for young adults 25-29 years old and the second most common form of cancer for young people 15-29 years old
-
On average, a person’s risk for melanoma doubles if he or she has had more than five sunburns
-
Melanoma is the fifth most common cancer for males and seventh most common for female