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May is Skin Cancer Awareness Month to Save Lives

George Woodbury
7 minutes ago
4 min read

by George Woodbury Jr. M.D. (04/27/2025)

Cordova Dermatologist counsels about Melnaoma, Basal Cell Carcinoma, and Squamous Cell Carcinoma — Memphis Dermatologist counsels a patient about Skin Cancer

The number of cases of both Melanoma and Skin Cancer continues to rise, so let’s take a look at several tips on Skin Cancer and Melanoma that might save your life – or that of a family member or friend – my own perspective being that of a Board certified Memphis Dermatologist since 1993, with Rheumatology and Dermatology, 8143 Walnut Grove Road, Cordova TN 38018, since 1993 (a suburb of Memphis TN; 1-901-753-0168).

Melanoma and Skin Cancer affect people from fair to darkly-pigmented so we are all really at risk of Skin Cancer — Melanoma and Skin Cancer affect people of all skin types

Key tip #1: Who’s at risk of Melanoma and Skin Cancer? The real question is who’s at ”ESPECIALLY high risk,” because really everyone is at risk of Melanoma and Skin Cancer, not just fair-complected people.

The traditional “especially high risk” people for Melanoma or Malignant Melanoma and Skin Cancer include:

*Red-heads and blonde individuals, though in reality most cases of Melanoma and Skin cancer develop in those with brown, black, or gray-haired individuals, possibly because these individuals are less wary of the sun, and may spend more time in Ultraviolet (UV) light, or even use dangerous indoor tanning.

*People of Scotch-Irish, English, German, or Scandinavian ancestry, but remember that the famous Afro-Caribbean Reggae musician Bob Marley died of Melanoma at the age of 36, from a spot that originated on his foot, so everyone is at risk, not just fair-complected people.

*People who tend to burn or peel in the sun, especially those with a history of blistering sunburns.

*People who have worked in or played in the sun, or those who have lived in Sunbelt states like Florida, Tennessee, and Arizona, including golfers, cyclists, skiers, sailors, and tennis players.

*People who have used ultraviolet rays (UV rays) at tanning salons.

Sunscreen is best applied every 45 minutes for adequate protection from Skin Cancer and Melanoma — Fair-complected couple at the beach with broad-spectrum sunscreen

Second tip: the best moves in prevention of Melanoma and Skin Cancer include:

*Avoidance of midday sun, between 9:00 AM and 4:00 PM.

*Proper use of “broad-spectrum sunscreen” protecting against both traditional UVB rays but also against the newly-appreciated-as-also dangerous UVA rays. Look for an SPF or Sun Protection Factor of 30 or higher. Remember to reapply every ninety minutes. Remember to reapply that sunscreen, for both yourself and your children, every 90 minutes when out. And it takes about 2 ounces to adequately cover a full-sized adult.

Melanoma on a characteristic location on a person's face — Melanoma warning signs on a person's forehead

Tip #3: Spotting a suspicious lesion for Melanoma or Skin Cancer early is key to effective treatment. Dermatologists watch for the “A, B, C, D, E” warning signs, or ABCDE warning signs, first described by Drs. Al Knopf and Daryl Rigel of New York University:

A=Asymmetry: the profile of one half of the lesion doesn’t match the other half.

B=Border irregularity: the profile of the margins of the lesion is jagged, like the coast of Maine, rather than smooth, like the coast of California.

C=Color Variation: different hues of brown, black, gray, or purple,

D=Darker Color, when compared with the person’s other moles, or D=Diameter is enlarging, and

E=Evolving or changing lesion.

Melanoma is most common on the back and chest of men and on the legs of women — Melanoma Skin Cancer with various hues of brown and an irregular border

But an Important Warning: some Melanomas and Skin Cancers like “Amelanotic Melanoma” do not show any of the ABCDE warning signs. If you or a family member is at especially high risk, do your own checks at home, but also definitely get checked periodically by a Board-certified Dermatologist.

Dermatologists are doctors or MDs of the Skin, the Hair, and the Nails — Dermatologist examining a patient's moles

Dermatologists can now achieve better Melanoma cancer outcomes. Most Skin Cancers and Melanomas are treated with “excisional surgery,” whereby the Dermatologic Surgeon cuts out the malignant cells under local anesthetic, out-patient. Mohs Surgery, available in my own Memphis Dermatology practice since 2004, is a way of checking the margins of tissue removed while the patient is still in the office, the goal being to clear the surgical margins of malignant skin cells. We can even treat “pre-malignant” skin growth, like an Actinic Keratosis or Actinic Keratoses, with liquid nitrogen (cryotherapy), or prescription creams: Efudex, Fluoroplex, Imiquimod (Aldara), and Retin A (Tretinoin).

Melanoma is a type of Skin Cancer that's at risk of spreading internally — Scarlet Akins developed Melanoma when in her mid-twenties

For what Melanoma looks like, check out a short Youtube movie on Melanoma sponsored by myself as a Cordova Dermatologist: YouTube: “Understanding the Melanoma Crisis: Scarlet’s Story.” It tells the story of Scarlet, a 26 year old student studying to be a teacher at Ole Miss who found out while seven months pregnant that she had metastatic Melanoma.

Memphis Dermatologist reviewing the ABCDS warning signs of Skin Cancer with a patient — Cordova Dermatologist Dr. George Woodbury counsels a patient about Skin Cancer and Melanoma

My own Memphis Dermatology and Dermatologic Surgery practice since 1993 has been at Rheumatology and Dermatology Associates (www.Rheumderm.com), 8143 Walnut Grove Road, Cordova TN, 38018, (1-901-753-0168), near Bartlett, Arlington, Germantown, Collierville, and East Memphis. Or you can find a Board-certified Dermatologist or a “Best Dermatologist Near Me” by going to the American Academy of Dermatology’s web site, www.AAD.org, then plugging your zip code into the “Find a Dermatologist” tab.