ANOKA, Minn. -- It's that time of year when many of us have our skin exposed to the warm sun.
That also puts us at risk of developing skin cancer. But how do you know if that unusual mole or bump is cancerous?
As part of Health Fair 11's Know Your Numbers campaign, July is skin safety month.
It's a topic Jacque Weidner of Anoka knows a lot about.
She was first diagnosed with skin cancer in 2005. She said, "I was terrified. I was at work and the first thing that came to my mind was I am a wife, a mother, a daughter, a sister and I have cancer?"
Luckily, this mom of two young boys had basal and squamous cell carcinomas, more treatable forms of the disease. Her doctor found her cancer after she asked him about some unusual moles.
Weidner said, "What was interesting to me was none of the things I had saw or thought were cancer were actually cancer. [The cancerous spots] were the ones on my back and under my arms that I could not see."
So how do you know if it's cancer?
Dr. Caleb Creswell is a dermatologist with Dermatology Specialists. He said the most common, and less life-threatening cancers, basal and squamous cell, are often pink or red. Creswell said, "These will often present as something that's painful, sore or bleeding that doesn't heal."
He says the more deadly form, malignant melanoma, is dark and changing and it's important to remember the following A,B,C,D and E's when evaluating your suspicious moles.
Asymmetrical - one side is often different from the other.
Border - it is often poorly defined.
Color - it can vary from brown to black. Creswell said some moles can even be red, white and blue.
Diameter - it is often larger than a pencil eraser.
Evolving - it is changing in size, shape and color.
Creswell said, "The things that I tell all my patients to look for are any spot that is painful, bleeding or tender or any mole that's changing or doesn't look like any of your other moles."
Weidner has since had two more bouts of skin cancer. All her cancer to this point has been removed. But she's watching for more. She blames too much tanning in the 80's.
She said, "We used to lather in baby oil back in the days and now I just lather in sunscreen."
And she doesn't just protect herself. Weidner said, "I make sure my kids, even if it's cloudy, they have sunscreen on."
Do you want to know how to protect yourself from skin cancer? Health Fair 11 has a sunscreen tip sheet for you to print out. Just click here.
(Copyright 2011 by KARE. All Rights Reserved.)