Beware dangers of the sun

Although Dan Seyferth and Christy Swigonski have not met, they enjoyed similar childhood summers that led to a not-so-enjoyable experience - skin cancer.

Swigonski, 45, and Seyferth, 57, both grew up in small towns in southern Illinois and spent a lot of their summer youth on the lakes that dot the region. Both can remember returning home from a day in the sun with blistering sunburns.

"I had one particular (burn) when I was probably a junior in high school where I was so burned, I bruised," said the fair-skinned Swigonski, an Edwardsville resident. "We (a friend and I) were so burned we were purple. I have never been that burned in my life."

Swigonski and Seyferth, a Columbia resident, grew up in a time when little was known about sun exposure's long-term effects, and sunscreen was wholly unavailable.

"In the '60s, it was very fashionable to see how dark you could get; I didn't even know what sun block was," Seyferth said. "I wish we knew then what we know now."
What experts now know - and what Seyferth stressed should be common sense - is that exposure to the sun's ultraviolet rays can lead to changes in skin cells and skin cancer.

Ultraviolet rays are a part of sunlight that is an invisible form of radiation; the rays are able to penetrate and change the structure of skin cells, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

There are two types of ultraviolet rays, UVA and UVB, that reach the earth. While it was widely thought for a time that only UVB rays could cause cancer, research has shown that UVA can be just as dangerous.

"UVA (rays) go deeper into the skin (than originally thought)," said Dr. Susan Schaberg, a dermatologist with Schaberg Dermatology in Edwardsville. "It was thought that maybe it caused wrinkling more than cancer, but now they're finding that UVA causes cancer probably as much as UVB does."

Consequently, baby boomers from the 1950s who became sun-worshippers in the '60s and '70s have become skin cancer patients today. The American Cancer Society reports nearly 1 million skin cancers occur annually in the United States, with the largest percentage of cases being white men aged 50 or more.

While there are a variety of types of skin cancer, the three most common are basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, and melanoma, the deadliest.

If discovered and removed early enough, the cancer is 100 percent treatable without the need for chemotherapy or radiation, Schaberg said. If left unchecked, the cancer growths can "take root," spreading deeper into the skin and reaching the blood stream.

"In the old days, they called it rodent ulcers, because it just grows relentlessly," Schaberg said of basal and squamous and basal cell carcinoma. "It can eat through skin and bone."

Swigonski, who described her skin as "lily-white," has been treated for basal cell carcinoma several times since 1995, while Seyferth, who has a darker complexion, has been treated for several cases of basal cell and squamous cell carcinoma in the past two years.

The two have not had to face melanoma, which is the fastest spreading form of skin cancer and is expected to cause 500 deaths this year in Illinois, according to the American Cancer Society.

But avoiding melanoma thus far doesn't keep them from taking precaution.

Seyferth, who has also battled stomach cancer and lymphoma, receives a full-body screening every four to six months. Anything that looks questionable comes off, he said.

"I'm blessed with a lot of moles, so that's one thing (my dermatologist and I) keep an eye on," he said. "I've been very, very lucky there hasn't been any signs of melanoma."

Swigonski, who will undergo minor surgery to remove a basal cell carcinoma growth on her hairline later this summer, also receives regular screenings and lets her dermatologist know of any growths that "look weird."

"Now that I've had it, I know the signs to look for," she said. "I have enough fear (of melanoma) that I check my body for it."

Skin cancer may occur in new growths, or may affect moles or spots the patient already has, Schaberg said. Patients should always bring up new growths - "You shouldn't get any new moles after (age) 40," she said - and look for changes in shape, color, and size in other moles.

"To me, it's as important as doing a monthly breast exam," Swigonski said.

Seyferth and Swigonski are now committed to sunscreen, applying it every time they go outside. They also make sure to cover up with hats or long sleeves, and seek out shade.

In addition, both are adamant that others use sunscreen, whether it is Swigonski's three children, or, in Seyferth's case, total strangers.

"I have approached people and asked "Do you have sun block on that baby?'" Seyferth said. "I'm almost a fanatic about it. If you're going outside and you have children, grease them up. Start them in the habit young."

Whether going outside for a half-hour or all day, sunscreen is an imperative weapon against sun exposure, Schaberg said. A SPF 30 is enough to block out or absorb, depending on the chemical makeup of the lotion, 95 percent of the sun's harmful rays, and is gentle enough for infants, she said.

"I always cringe when I see people with little babies who've been burned," said Schaberg, who has already treated 12 cases of melanoma this year. "(Sunscreen) really is important; you shouldn't blow it off."

Anytime a mole looks questionable, see a primary caregiver or dermatologist, she said. Too often, people wait until it is too late to have something checked out, and the cancer has either spread or has dug deeply enough to cause serious disfigurement or even amputation when removed.

"It just seems so silly to die of a cancer that is on your skin -that is visible," Schaberg said. "(Patients) always apologize because they think they are bothering (me) with something small, but once (the cancer) gets through, all bets are off."