Health & safety bulletin
Skin cancer
29th June 2006
In the UK there are over 7000 new cases of skin cancer diagnosed each year, and many cases are not reported, so the exact number is probably much higher. The number of cases has doubled since the early 80s and over 2000 people die each year in the UK. In 2000 there was an increase of 16%, and 24% over the next 5 years up to 2005.
Skin cancer is one of the most common cancers in the UK and the number of people getting it is increasing. Most skin cancers are caused by damage from U.V. (ultraviolet) rays in sunlight; these could be prevented if we protect ourselves from the sun.
Just because we live in the UK it doesn’t mean we can’t get it, in fact there are more skin cancer deaths in the UK than in Australia, even though Australia has more reported cases of the disease. Just because in this country we don’t have sunshine weather 365 days a year, doesn’t mean we are immune. The minute we get any good weather in the UK, if you go down any street, any park, any building site you will always see people trying to “get a bit of colour” with shorts and T-shirts (or rather lack of T-shirts), just so we can go that lobster red then peel before we tan!
There are 2 types of U.V Rays - UVA and UVB:
- UVB radiation has a shorter wavelength and penetrates the upper layer of the epidermis and can cause sunburn and skin cancer.
- UVA radiation has a longer wavelength and penetrates deeper into the dermis, affecting elastin and ageing the skin. Until recently UVA was thought not to have a roll in skin cancer development, but increasing evidence shows that UVA and UVB both cause damage to the DNA which can lead to skin cancer.
There are 2 types of skin cancer- Malignant Melanoma and Non Melanoma.
Malignant Melanoma is the most serious type. It usually develops in the cells in the outer layers of skin, but can spread to other parts of the body and may be fatal. Melanoma may start with a change in a pre existing mole or freckle or previously normal skin.
Non Melanoma is the most common and easily treated type of cancer; more than 90% of cancers are this type. This type has 2 forms which are Basal and Squamous.
Basal Cell is the most common and tends to affect older people. It usually starts with a small round or flattened lump that can be red, pale or pearly in colour, sometimes it appears as a scaly eczema like patch on the skin, they usually but not always appear on the areas of skin most exposed such as head, neck, shoulders and limbs.
Squamous Cell is the more serious as it can spread to other parts of the body if left untreated. It appears as persistent red scaly spots or lumps, sores or ulcers which may bleed easily. They usually affect older people with a lifetime of heavy sun exposure and those who constantly work outside exposed to the elements. They occur most often on the head, neck, hands and forearms.
ALWAYS REPORT ANY MOLE CHANGES OR UNUSUAL SKIN CHANGES TO YOUR DOCTOR.
- SKIN CANCER RATES ARE INCREASING.
- MALINANT MELANOMA IS THE THIRD MOST COMMON CANCER IN 15-39 YEAR OLDS.
- THE GREATER EXPOSURE TO UV RADIATION THE HIGHER THE RISK.
- MOST SKIN CANCERS ARE PREVENTABLE BY PROTECTING THE SKIN FROM THE SUN’S DAMAGING RAYS.
- SKIN CANCER OCCURS MAINLY IN PEOPLE WITH FAIR HAIR, LIGHT EYES, FRECKLY SKIN, RED OR FAIR HAIR, BUT ANYONE WHO IS EXPOSED TO THE SUN’S RAYS FOR LONG PERIODS INCREASES THE RISK OF GETTING IT …THAT COULD BE YOU!!!!!.
That old saying that prevention is better than the cure could never be more truthful, so how do we prevent it?
- Stay in the shade between 11am-3pm if possible.
- Make sure you never burn, don’t wait for your mate to tell you that you’re “getting a bit red”.
- Always cover up with a T-shirt (long sleeved if possible), hat, hard hat to protect your head, gloves to protect the hands and wraparound sunglasses / tinted safety glasses.
- Always use factor 15+ sunscreen on all exposed skin.
The SPF (sun protection factor) of a sunscreen is its ability to filter out dangerous UVB Rays. The higher the factor the more protection you get from burning. Higher factor sunscreens tend to be more expensive. The reason experts recommend factor 15 is that it represents the best balance between protection and price. You will get 90% protection from UVB Rays with factor 15 – REMEMBER NO SUNSCREEN NO MATTER HOW HIGH THE FACTOR CAN OFFER 100% PROTECTION.
Many cases of sunburn happen when people are not deliberately “sun-bathing” you may be outdoors working or just sitting in the park or having lunch, we often forget how strong the sun can be. The sun does not need to feel hot to damage your skin; you can burn on even the cloudiest of days. The heat comes from Infrared Rays, not UV Rays so you can burn on cool, cloudy days. If you burn, it is very likely that the skin will peel; this is the body’s way of getting rid of damaged skin cells that could develop Skin Cancer.
If you get burned, apply lots of moisturising cream and cover the damaged skin, drink plenty of water to reduce dehydration and keep the area completely covered until the redness has gone.
Due to the nature of our work we are exposed more often than not, so what do we do?
- APPLY FACTOR 15+ TO ALL EXPOSED AREAS OF SKIN AT LEAST 15-30MINS BEFORE GOING OUT IN THE SUN; WEAR A LONG SLEEVED T SHIRT IF POSSIBLE.
- PUT ON ALL PPE - HARD HAT TO PROTECT THE HEAD, GLOVES TO PROTECT THE HANDS,DARK/TINTED WRAPAROUND GLASSES TO PROTECT THE EYES.
- DRINK PLENTY OF FLUIDS TO STOP DEHYDRATION.
- RE-APPLY SUNSCREEN EVERY 2HRS OR MORE FREQUENTLY IF WASHED, RUBBED OR SWEATED OFF.
REMEMBER YOU DON’T NEED A TAN TO BE HEALTHY OR LOOK GOOD.
If you see your work colleague or worker on a site you are working on starting to burn, tell them to cover up the exposed skin and ask them to apply sunscreen if possible, you may just save their life, so be sun smart and be safe.