Screening for Melanoma and Other Skin Cancer Shows a Higher Early Melanoma Incidence: Social Educational Program "Life Fear-Free".
Dermatopathology (Basel) 2021;
8:54-68. [PMID:
33803969 PMCID:
PMC8008317 DOI:
10.3390/dermatopathology8010011]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/12/2021] [Revised: 03/09/2021] [Accepted: 03/12/2021] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND
The screening program Life Fear-Free (LFF) aimed at early diagnosis of cutaneous melanoma (CM) was introduced in Samara, Chelyabinsk, Yekaterinburg, and Krasnodar (Russia) in 2019.
OBJECTIVES
To analyze the impact of the program on early CM and non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC) detection.
METHODS
According to the social educational campaign, people were informed about CM risk factors and symptoms and were invited for skin examination. The program planned to involve 3200 participants in total. Participants with suspicious lesions were invited for excisional biopsy.
RESULTS
3143 participants, including 75.4% women, were examined for skin lesions. The average age of the participants was 43.7 years. Mostly skin phototypes II and III were registered (48.2% and 41.0%, respectively); 3 patients had CM, 15 had basal cell carcinoma, and 1 had Bowen's disease, which were confirmed histologically. All detected melanomas had Breslow's thickness of 1 mm.
CONCLUSION
The participants showed high interest in early skin cancer detection programs. The incidence rate of CM and NMSCs among the program participants was higher than in general public. The early disease grade was proven for the detected CMs and NMSCs. The study has shown that it is important to continue such programs.
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