SPF--an everyday use

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Jack Sanders
  • 3rd Wing Public Affairs
JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska --  After the dark Alaskan winter many would say they're glad to see the abundant sun of summer, but is the daylight doing more harm than good?

The Elmendorf dermatology clinic, which deals with the skin and its diseases, is answering that very question daily to their patients.

"Our patients range anywhere from skin cancers, to psoriasis, to eczema and a variety of skin elements," said Major Joy Wu, 3rd Medical Group, dermatology chief.

Alaska's summers allow for a variety of activities like fishing, hiking and sports and with long days most of these activities are in the sun.

"The biggest concern during the summer here is (ultraviolet) exposure because of the length of the day time. People need to be aware of the (risk of) prolonged exposure to the sunshine, especially because we're all cooped up in the winter time," Major Wu said.

Serious skin and health damage can be avoided by following simple rules like, wearing sun-screen.

"Sunscreen is definitely a must, especially since it's a little cooler here, you may not realize the amount you're getting, but definitely use a daily sunscreen and a hat to cover your eyes, nose and ears," said Major Wu.

The largest risk to the skin from prolonged exposure to UV rays is skin cancer.

"The head, neck and hands are prone to skin cancer," said Major Wu. "You can get skin cancer anywhere; those are just the areas that are prone to getting it."

"There are three main types (of skin cancer); the biggest one is melanoma -- that is the deadliest one," said Major Wu. "The second most aggressive is squamous cell carcinoma skin cancer. And, the third is basal cell skin cancer."

Skin cancer can start out simple and develop into a more serious problem if not cared for.

"Skin cancer derives from the cells in your skin's different layers," said the Major. "Melanoma derives from the melanocytes or the base of your top skin layers, those are the cells that make your pigment," she said. "Often they'll look like some sort of dark mole or dark pigment, but they're not always darkly pigmented."

When it comes to skin cancer everyone's at risk.

"What's important is to remind people that there aren't just certain types of people who get skin cancer," said Tech Sgt. William Lewis, 3rd MDG, NCO in charge of dermatology. "The lighter your skin is does increase the likelihood of skin cancer, but we have patients who are 20 years old who have aggressive melanomas and people who are very dark skinned with melanoma, so it's dangerous when people try and categorize skin cancer thinking, 'Well, I'm 25 years old, I don't need to worry about that.' when we have patients coming in who are 23. Everyone needs to follow the universal precautions of cover up and wear UV protection."

When outside enjoying Alaska's wonderment, just remember to put on sunscreen and always perform the ABCDE checks, said Major WU.

"There are the ABCDEs of checking for skin cancer," said Major Wu. "The A is for asymmetry, nobodies' moles are completely circular, but if one side is jagged and the other is circular then that would be something to worry about. B is for border. So if all of a sudden your sort of circular mole has a little foot sticking out of it or sort of a little outcropping that would be worrisome. C stands for color, so now your uniformly brown mole is changing colors to darker brown, black, blue, red -- I've even seen white areas of color change. D is for diameter; in general, if it fits under the head of an eraser, which is approximately six millimeters in diameter, we consider it more benign. I've seen melanomas that are smaller than that, but that's the general guideline. And finally, E for evolving. So anything that's making you say 'you know what, it's just changing, it's itching, it's bleeding, it's enlarging or raising off the skin. Those are the ABCDEs."

The Major suggested an annual skin check is important, and if there is a history of skin cancer in the family, check more often than once a year.

"It kind of surprised me, being new to dermatology. I didn't expect to see some people so young coming in with that significant cancer," said Sergeant Lewis.