Give me sunscreen

Skin cancer, wrinkles and leathery skin - that's what you get if you lie in the sun. It's time to stop dying for a tan

AS A child Jimmy Bickerstaff often played in the sun and no one worried when his sensitive skin turned beetroot red because it always went brown eventually. Later, he went to Australia and spent two glorious years exposing pale Scottish skin to the unfamiliar heat. "At that time we didn't know anything about skin cancer," reflects the 80-year old from Blantyre, who was diagnosed with non-melanoma skin cancer in 1984. Now little scars pepper his face, chest, neck, ear and eyes, where the growths have been cut away in 25 places.

It is not surprising that men and women of Jimmy's age develop skin cancer. In a generation where the fashion-conscious used olive oil to cultivate a deep tan, and the rest just turned puce in the summer heat, no one understood the risks they were taking. These days we have no such excuse because it is widely acknowledged that skin cancer is caused by frequent and unprotected exposure to the sun. Yet the disease is now one of the most rapidly growing cancers in Britain, with more than 40,000 incidents recorded each year. In the last ten years deaths from malignant melanoma - the most serious form - have increased by one third.

In Scotland the situation is particularly critical. Last year over 7,000 people were told they had the condition and cases of malignant melanoma rose by 38 per cent between 1986-1995. Once associated with the leathery complexions of older generations, the disease is currently increasing among young people. The most common form is non- melanoma, a condition which is usually treatable and controllable, but roughly one in eight is malignant melanoma, which can spread to the rest of the body and is responsible for most deaths from the disease.

Not only are Scots more vulnerable to skin cancer because of their fair skin but recent research has indicated that we are genetically more likely to develop the disease than those from other parts of the UK. Professor David Melton, of the University of Edinburgh, compared local patients who had melanoma with healthy individuals and found that Scottish people often have genetic faults that render them unable to repair sun-damaged skin. "Our work shows that tiny mistakes in vital genes give people a two or three times greater risk of getting the disease. And this combined with a fair complexion can be particularly dangerous," says Melton. "We believe that there are a number of these genes and they can combine to give people an even higher risk of the disease, perhaps as much as ten times higher."

The rising incidence of skin cancer is a result of a culture obsessed with the perfect tan. This quest for brown bodies is often carried to extremes, as many people believe burning is simply a painful and necessary stage of the beauty process. Malignant melanoma is twice as common in women and those who were sunburned as children are most likely to develop the more serious strain of the disease, as are people who don't tan. Repeated use of sun beds has also been linked to increased skin cancer.

The first signs appear through existing markings on the skin, such as moles or freckles, which may become larger, redder or rougher. In most cases the development is quite harmless, but it is essential to visit a doctor at this stage because if the mark is malignant, it can be removed before it spreads. Malignant melanoma affects melanocytes, the pigment-producing cells found in the skin, and is associated with frequent, high intensity sun exposure. Other types of skin cancer, known as basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma, are not usually fatal but will tend to grow and disfigure if left untreated. They can be effectively taken out under minor surgery and a new, non- scarring treatment called the Paterson Photo Dynamic Therapy lamp is also available. Non-melanomas are common among older age groups and outdoor workers who have a year-round tan, but rising numbers of young people are affected.

To prevent skin cancer, experts recommend using a sunscreen of at least sun protection factor 15. Even so, recent research indicates that some people who use such products still develop the disease, possibly because not enough cream is used. "Generally people only apply a quarter of what they should and they don't apply it consistently over their bodies," says Rachael Dutton, coordinator for Cancer Awareness in Scotland. Better instead to accept that sunbathing is not suited to our delicate northern make-up. The Victorians, with their white skins and parasols, were perhaps wiser Melanoma and related cancers of the skin information line: 01722 415 071 Skinship (help and support on skin diseases): 01387 760 567 Paterson PDT lamp: contact Oliver Miller of Photo Therapeutics Ltd on: miller@dialstart.net

Copyright 2001
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