A Month of Facts

May has come and gone this year.  Melanoma Awareness Month 2015 is over.  But I’d like to think that the results of actions taken this month will extend well into the following months.

I decided to take my action by sharing a skin cancer or melanoma facts throughout the month.  Each day, I posted a specific fact about the cancer.  The only exception was on Melanoma Monday where I posted a plea to simply be aware of melanoma.  Some people doubted particular facts, but I assure you that each was quoted from a legitimate source.  In most cases, the true raw source was available from the source I cited.  For instance, I read the fact that UV radiation is a proven carcinogen, which was cited from the Skin Cancer Foundation website.  The true source listed within the site was the National Toxicology Program. Report on Carcinogens, Twelfth Edition. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, National Toxicology Program. 2011: 429-430.  It was a little hard for me to fit all that in the space provided in each fact snippet, so I simply referenced the Skin Cancer Foundation as my source.  If you doubted any of my sources, please dig a little more to find the raw source.

The most doubted, yet most shared fact was that more people develop skin cancer because of tanning than develop lung cancer because of smoking.  In case you wish to research this a bit more, the raw source was from the following: Wehner M, Chren M-M, Nameth D, et al. International prevalence of indoor tanning: a systematic review and meta-analysis. JAMA Dermatol 2014; 150(4):390-400. Doi: 10.1001/jamadermatol.2013.6896.

Anyhow, I was asked a few times to share all of the month’s fact at one time, so you’ll find the entire list and the general sources lists below.  But before I share the list, let me make a few statements. 

First of all, many of the statistics I've shared relate to cancer and death.  You can change these statistics!  You can help prevent melanoma primarily by protecting yourself from the UV rays and seeing your dermatologist regularly. If we prevent the disease, the depressing and alarming statistics would no longer exist.

Secondly, for those of you who have melanoma, the statistics I've shared apply to people in the past…they do not apply to you personally.  Statistics do not define your fight…your hope…your triumph.  You do! 

Lastly, let me share a few more statistics.  I posted 31 different facts.  These facts were read by over 325,000 people on Facebook alone.  The facts were shared on Facebook a total of over 4,800 times.  I shared the facts on Twitter and Instagram as well, so the exposure extended even further.  This has been a true example of spreading melanoma awareness.  It indeed spreads and it works.  Grassroots campaigns such as Black is the New Pink and countless others work.  Please, please, please continue to spread awareness to your friends, families and total strangers.  It makes a difference! 

Thank you to each any every person who read, liked, or shared these facts during Melanoma Awareness Month!  Also, thank you to staff member Donald at the Waterside Resort in Hilton Head Island who helped me work out some technical glitches with my tablet so that I could continue posting these facts even while I was on a family vacation!

Here are all the facts:

Source	Statement
SCF	One out of every five Americans will get skin cancer in their lifetime.
ACS	Each year there are more new cases of skin cancer than the combined incidence of cancers of the breast, prostate, lung and colon.
AAD	The annual cost of treating skin cancers in the U.S. is estimated at $8.1 billion
	The literal definition of "melanoma" is "black tumor."  Today is Melanoma Monday.  Please wear black today to help up raise awareness and to honor those touched by melanoma…past, present, and future.
SCF	About 90 percent of nonmelanoma skin cancers are associated with exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation from the sun.
MIF	Melanoma/skin cancer is the most underfunded of all cancers by federal and private agencies
http://mfne.org/	Melanoma accounts for 5% of all skin cancers and 71% of all skin cancer deaths.
AIM	The incidence of melanoma has increased 15 times in the last 40 years. This is a more rapid increase than for any other cancer!
Cleveland Clinic	Melanoma is the most common cancer in women ages 25 to 29
Cleveland Clinic	Melanoma is the second most common cancer in women ages 30 to 34, as well as in men ages 30 to 49.
http://mfne.org/	Thirty percent of all melanoma in men arises on the back
AAD	Melanoma is the fastest growing cancer in the U.S. and worldwide.
About.com	Melanoma often starts out as a mole and can be removed if caught early.
MIF	From 1970 to 2009, the incidence of melanoma increased by 800 percent among young women and 400 percent among young men.
ACS	In 2015, it is estimated that there will be 73,870 new cases of melanoma in the United States
AAD	One in 50 Americans will develop melanoma in their lifetime.
AAD	On average, one American dies from melanoma every hour.
Cancer Research UK	The average age for melanoma diagnosis is 50, compared to other cancers, which is closer to 65-70 years old.
AAD	In 2015, it is estimated that 9,940 deaths will be attributed to melanoma — 6,640 men and 3,300 women.
AIM	People under age 45 account for 25% of all melanoma cases.
AIM	10% of all people with melanoma have a family history of melanoma.
SCF	Of the seven most common cancers in the US, melanoma is the only one whose incidence is increasing.
SCF	On average, a person’s risk for melanoma doubles if he or she has had more than five sunburns.
SCF	Regular daily use of an SPF 15 or higher sunscreen reduces the risk of developing melanoma by 50 percent.
SCF	Ultraviolet radiation (UVR) is a proven human carcinogen.
SCF	More people develop skin cancer because of tanning than develop lung cancer because of smoking.
SCF	Contrary to popular belief, 80 percent of a person’s lifetime sun exposure is not acquired before age 18; only about 23 percent of lifetime exposure occurs by age 18
2011 study on solar altitude	UV eye exposure is greatest during early morning and late afternoon when the sun is lower.  Wear your sunglasses!
EPA	Cloud cover reduces UV levels, but not completely. Depending on the thickness of the cloud cover, it is possible to burn on a cloudy day, even if it does not feel warm.
EPA	Surfaces like snow, sand, pavement, and water reflect much of the UV radiation that reaches them. Because of this reflection, UV intensity can be deceptively high even in shaded areas.
My Brother Jeff	Melanoma may start on your skin, but it can spread to your lungs, brain, and other organs.  It can kill you.