{"id":9775,"date":"2024-05-23T13:43:35","date_gmt":"2024-05-23T11:43:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ferocancer.org\/understanding-melanoma-prevention-detection-and-hope\/"},"modified":"2026-09-05T10:07:07","modified_gmt":"2026-09-05T08:07:07","slug":"understanding-melanoma-prevention-detection-and-hope","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ferocancer.org\/en\/understanding-melanoma-prevention-detection-and-hope\/","title":{"rendered":"Understanding Melanoma: Prevention, Detection, and Hope"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Skin cancer is one of the most common cancers worldwide.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In 2023, an estimated 20,392 new cases of skin cancer were reported in Spain, according to data provided by the Cancer Observatory of the Spanish Association Against Cancer, a figure that has increased by approximately 40% in the last 4 years<sup>1<\/sup>.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Today is World Melanoma Day, the most aggressive yet less common type, and we believe it is important to raise awareness about this disease and all possible actions that exist to protect ourselves from it and, ultimately, prevent it.<\/p>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Melanoma: What Is It?<\/h2>\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Skin cancers are classified into three main types, depending on the skin cells in which they originate: basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, and melanoma. The latter is the most aggressive and, although also less common, accounts for more than half of deaths associated with skin cancer. <\/li>\n<li>It is believed that melanoma can appear as a new mole or change an existing mole, although this is not entirely true. Melanoma begins in cells called melanocytes, which are responsible for producing skin pigment. It usually develops when these melanocytes begin to grow abnormally and out of control.  <\/li>\n<li>It is important to detect and treat it early, because it can spread very quickly to other parts of the body (a phenomenon known as metastasis), which makes it very aggressive.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Melanoma can be prevented. Risk factors and preventive measures. <\/h2>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It is important to know that melanoma, often caused by prolonged sun exposure, can be prevented, especially with proper protection from an early age, as its influence is cumulative. Do you want to know how you can protect yourself? <\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Ministry of Health proposes a series of recommendations:<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Protect your head with caps or hats. Even if you have hair, your scalp can also get sunburned. Avoid peak sun hours and long periods of sun exposure. Apply sunscreen products with an adequate and high factor depending on skin type, age, and body area, applying them half an hour before sun exposure and reapplying every two hours and after each swim. Do not limit protection solely to beach or pool time, as sunburn can also occur in daily life if outdoor activities are performed. <\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Sun damage is cumulative, which is why permanent and continuous care from an early age is important. In fact, sunburns at a young age are associated with a higher incidence of melanoma in adults. <\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Furthermore, monitoring the appearance of abnormal skin lesions is another crucial way to prevent the effects of melanoma, given that the skin is a highly visible organ and allows us to perform, to some extent, early diagnoses through regular self-examinations. We propose the ABCDE rule to identify possible indicators of melanoma: <\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Asymmetry<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">: moles that are not symmetrical or oval-shaped.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Border<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">: irregular or jagged borders.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Color<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">: heterogeneous or multi-colored moles.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Diameter<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">: moles larger than 6 mm.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Evolution<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">: changes in size, shape, or color.<\/p>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Diagnosis and Treatment<\/h2>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In addition to the possibility of developing melanoma, certain consequences of prolonged sun exposure include sunburn, heatstroke, eye problems, changes in the immune system, and premature skin aging.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The increase in cases of skin cancer, both carcinoma and malignant melanoma, in recent years, clearly demonstrates the risks associated with this radiation when adequate precautionary measures are not adopted.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Treatments vary depending on the type of tumor, with surgery being common in early stages. However, other therapies such as radiotherapy, chemotherapy, targeted treatments, and immunotherapy may also be used, depending on the type of tumor and its stage of development. <\/p>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Melanoma Research<\/h2>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Research has been fundamental in advancing the understanding, diagnosis, and treatment of melanoma, leading to significant improvements in patient survival and quality of life.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In recent years, research advances have brought about a paradigm shift in melanoma treatment with significant therapeutic progress, improving treatment effectiveness and increasing survival, especially in cases of advanced melanoma through the use of immunotherapy combined with targeted therapies.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Education and awareness campaigns about the risks of overexposure to the sun and its impact on the skin have also helped reduce cases related to UV exposure.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Following this trend, future research directions in melanoma will encompass fields such as immunotherapy, targeted and combined therapies, biomarker identification, as well as prevention and early detection. As research progresses, these innovations are expected to contribute significantly to improving outcomes and more effectively treating melanoma cases. <\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">At FERO, we want to get a little closer to this goal. Will you help us? <\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">1 Data from the AEDV: Spanish Academy of Dermatology and Venereology.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Skin cancer is one of the most common cancers worldwide. In 2023, an estimated 20,392 new cases of skin cancer were reported in Spain, according to data provided by the Cancer Observatory of the Spanish Association Against Cancer, a figure that has increased by approximately 40% in the last 4 years1. Today is World Melanoma [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9776,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_titles_title":"Melanoma: How to Prevent Skin Cancer","_seopress_titles_desc":"Understand what melanoma is, its risk factors, how to prevent skin cancer with sun protection, and the ABCDE rule for early detection.","_seopress_robots_index":"","_seopress_robots_follow":"","_seopress_robots_imageindex":"","_seopress_robots_snippet":"","_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_robots_breadcrumbs":"","_seopress_robots_freeze_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_custom_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_canonical":"","_seopress_social_fb_title":"","_seopress_social_fb_desc":"","_seopress_social_fb_img":"","_seopress_social_fb_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_height":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_title":"","_seopress_social_twitter_desc":"","_seopress_social_twitter_img":"","_seopress_social_twitter_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_height":0,"_seopress_redirections_value":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled_regex":"","_seopress_redirections_logged_status":"","_seopress_redirections_param":"","_seopress_redirections_type":0,"_seopress_analysis_target_kw":"","_seopress_news_disabled":"","_seopress_video_disabled":"","_seopress_video":[],"_seopress_pro_schemas_manual":[],"_seopress_pro_rich_snippets_disable_all":"","_seopress_pro_rich_snippets_disable":[],"_seopress_pro_schemas":[],"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[97],"tags":[142,118],"class_list":["post-9775","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-outreach-and-prevention","tag-melanoma-and-skin-cancer","tag-prevention"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ferocancer.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9775","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ferocancer.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ferocancer.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ferocancer.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ferocancer.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9775"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/ferocancer.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9775\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9777,"href":"https:\/\/ferocancer.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9775\/revisions\/9777"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ferocancer.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9776"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ferocancer.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9775"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ferocancer.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9775"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ferocancer.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9775"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}