The heat is turning up and the sleeves are getting shorter, which means our skin is coming out of hibernation. However, before baring all, honing on in on the sun’s behaviours and skin cancer actualities it is essential to strengthening UV knowledge and sun protection pathways.

UV What?

The integrity of our skin is affected by both UVB and UVA – not either or – which is why it is essential to apply abroad-spectrum sunscreen year-round, not just summertime.

Contrary to what you might think, allUV rays can compromise our skin. Both UVB and UVA rays impact our skin, just indifferent ways.

UVA rays . . .

-         Have lower energy levels but higher wavelengths.

-         Indirectly cause damage to our DNA.

-         Can penetrate cells deeper in our skin,

-         Can cause premature aging.

UVB rays . . .

-         Have high energy levels but shorter wavelengths.

-         Directly cause damage to our DNA.

-         Damage the outer layers of our skin.

-         Cause the majority of our skin cancers.

The damage our skin and cells sustain is scaled with the amount of UV energy our skin absorbs. Specifically, it is the proteins that help bind our skin cells together that UV weakens, so to minimise sunburn and other sun-related problems, means being vigilant with our skin protection is important year-round.  

Skin cancers in focus

Squamous Cell Carcinoma (SCC) and Basal Cell Carcinoma (BCC) are the two most common skin cancers Downunder.

SCC cancers can either present a slower growing pattern or rapidly enlarge in just a few weeks. BCC typically veer on the slow growing side and have minimal spread.  

SCC will commonly . . .

-         Be reddish in colour, be crusty and may feel tender.

-         Be found in sun exposed places.

-         Fair skinned people are a dominant at-risk group.

-         Men are twice as likely as women to develop SCC lesions.

BCC will commonly . . .

-         Can be both pearly and pale in colour, with a waxy surface, or be crusty and scabby.

-         Over 85% of BCC lesions will present on the head and neck.

-         Most common in fair skinned people and appears in later years.

Melanoma quick facts . . .

-         70% of melanoma cases in New Zealand are superficial melanoma – slow growing horizontal pattern, then spreading.

-         Can appear quickly as a new lesion; alternately existing lesions can present with colour, size and shape changes.

-         Present anywhere on the body.

Time to check in

When it comes to skin, change is not as good as a holiday, so it’s important to monitor and watch for symptoms year-round. Keep an eye out for any new moles that pop up or changes in colour, shape and size in existing lesions, stay abreast of pain or bleeding in or around a mole or lesion, watch for lightening of a moles.

During summer, it can be harder to identify skin lesions that need attention because the skin is hyped up with sun activity, so booking in a skin check post-summer or pre-summer is and self-screening in between, is essential to skin health and peace-of-mind.

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