The Importance of Skin Cancer Testing
It is important to test for skin cancer as early as possible to prevent any damage to your body’s largest organ. Skin cancer can come on as early as your 30’s if you are in the sun often. Most people who get skin cancer are older than that but melanoma is not uncommon in young adults. It is actually one of the most common cancers in young adults, even more so for women.
Tanning beds, outdoor activities, long exposure to sun, reburning areas of your skin, living in high elevations, and not being hydrated enough are some of the main cause of skin cancer. Now doing any of these things once will hardly be bad (except for reburning areas of your skin) but it is important to take preventative measures now to protect yourself against skin cancer.
Getting tested early will reduce your risk of getting skin cancer. Testing is often just a physical examination of your skin. If a lesion is spotted during the exam then a biopsy will be performed. A biopsy is a test that will remove some skin tissues to be studied by a pathologist. We can perform all of these tests in our Bountiful, Utah office.
Did you know that living in a high elevation increases your risk of skin cancer?
Utah has one of the highest risks of melanoma in the nation. Hawaii has one of the lowest. Protecting your skin by wearing hats, long sleeve shirts and pants will enable you to ward off the sun from damaging your skin.
