>> >>JOANNE: The study looked at first time diagnosis of melanoma in patients between
18 and 39 years.
Increased 8 fold in women, four fold in men.
Greg Daniels medical on call js joins me.
Oncologist.
>> >>JOANNE: You think with so much information these days about sun exposure and sun screen
we'd think the rates would go down.
Why aren't we?
>> >>GREG DANIELS: Great question.
Not respecting in Minnesota or the U.S., it's happening world wide.
We've seen the rates go up.
It's a fundamental and important question.
>> >>JOANNE: You mention Minnesota because the city roped in people between 1970 and
2009, it seemed to implement tanning bedzs.
Are tanning beds proposing more of a risk than the sun?
>> >>GREG DANIELS: Absolute whrea in terms of tanning beds are what wie know not to do.
So that's what the tanning bed is, a big blast of UV radiation.
We know that's strongly associated with increased ins dpts.
>> >>JOANNE: So there's been a lot of about tanning beds in the media.
In California we have a new law people under 18 can't go to a tanning bed.
You talk about this sort of sudden burst of exposure.
If we had to take that and put it in the real world in terms of sun exposure, does that
mean we shouldn't be out in the sun at certain time of the year?
>> >>GREG DANIELS: Our general recommendations are that.
You can look in the paper, absolutely during 10 and 2, those peek sun hours you want to
avoidÊ not necessarily avoid being outside, that's a very healthy thing to do.
If you're going to be outside and put yourself at risk for this intense blast, then sun protective
clothing and sun safe practices are recommended.
>> >>JOANNE: KPBS has reported in the past and I believe we've talked to you in the past
that it's not necessarily the right thing to do to avoid the sun all together.
>> >>GREG DANIELS: It's a complicated story, but I can tell you that there are non melanoma
skin kansers, there's a direct link for chronic exposure.
Chronic just means you're getting daily sun exposure, we know that cells in the head and
neck area directly link to this chronic sun damage.
We look that genes that cause those type of cancers, they have that tell tale sign, UV
was here.
We can see that in the DNA.
Melanoma, denies that link.
So chronic sun exposure tends not to be as bad as intermittent sun exposure.
But how do you balance that?
That's the big kun und conundrum right now.
Before I mentioned there was a study done again in the mid west that looked at chronic
sun exposure versus those people that had an occupation who put y them at intermittent.
We could so chronic sun exposure was documented by skin chaismgs, in biopsies we can do that,
yet the rates of melanoma and the death rate of melanoma was lower in the chronic sun damage
skin participants versus intermittent.
So what do we do with that?
How do we advise patients?
We go back again, we know that intermittent sun exposure and intensity is linked to it,
how do we work chronic sun exposure into our lives.
I don't know about you, but my day is in doors, and I'm lucky if I get sun in the parking
lot walking to my car.
Is that related to the changes in the ins incidents because this study pointed out a
huge increase in young people?
There's something more that's going on, a lifestyle change that's happening.
Another thing to think about, is if you get a health issue, homestead county is the place
to be.
Southern Minnesota has health care second to none, this is the mayo, clinic.
It provide as special unique opportunity in the study, what an early intervention program
will give you.
An early intervention these patients have good access to high quality care where these
young people, their melanomas were very thin.
But their death rates were lower.
So if you have a spot that's changing, point it out because it could be melanoma.
If you catch it, the chances are you're going to survive the attack.
>> >>JOANNE: We're going to have to end it there.
But I do want to direct peep tool our website KPBS.org, we do link to this stud expea have
a lot more information inkreud cruding information about prevention, early detection.
Thank you so much doctor for being here.