May is National Skin Cancer Awareness Month! Did you know that everyone, regardless of their skin type, needs to practice daily sun protection and be on the lookout for skin cancer? Many people still do not realize that the extra melanin in darker skin is NOT enough to guard against developing skin cancer and sun damage to the skin. Even though people with skin of color have a lower risk of developing melanoma than lighter skin types, the disease is often diagnosed at later stages in skin of color, when melanoma is more advanced and more difficult to treat. In Hispanic populations, melanoma is on the rise, and is being diagnosed at earlier ages than ever before. Check out this eye-opening Skin of Color Society educational video, “Sun Protection and Skin Cancer Prevention in Melanin-Rich Skin,” featuring SOCS leaders Seemal R. Desai, MD, (moderator); Cheryl Burgess, MD; Maritza Perez, MD, and Dhaval Bhanusali, MD, in an informative roundtable discussion that addresses many myths and misconceptions.

#sunsafety #skincancer #skincancerawareness #melanoma #SOCS #skinofcolorsociety #skinofcolor #dermatology #dermatologist #sunscreen #patienteducation