The Minnesota Department of Health has created a video featuring the experiences of Emma, a melanoma survivor. Emma was diagnosed with melanoma in 2016. Her oncologist said that her melanomas had been cultivating for years as result of UV exposure. As a child, she lived with her family in Guam where she spent a lot of time playing outside in the sun. Regularly applying sunscreen was not a part of her family’s routine. Upon her return from Guam, her naturally fair skin was noticeably freckled. As a teen, Emma’s UV exposure continued with the use of indoor tanning beds.
As you may know, melanoma is the deadliest form of skin cancer. It is also one of the most common cancers among Minnesotans ages 20-49. Over the last 15 years, the rate of melanoma in Minnesota has increased 4% annually among young non-Hispanic White women. In 2014 Minnesota passed a law which bans minors from using indoor tanning facilities. Among students surveyed in 2013, tanning was most common among White females in 11th grade (33.7% used a tanning device). Only about 8% of non-White students used a tanning device in 2013. Since the 2014 law went into effect, tanning bed use has dropped among Minnesota teens. A dramatic drop was seen in 11th grade White girls- from 33.7% to 8.8% from 2013 to 2016. Click here to learn more about this success story.
In general, melanoma rates among males and females in Minnesota have begun to show evidence of leveling off from 2009 to 2014. However, melanoma still continues to harm many Minnesotans. In 2014, the incidence rate of melanoma was 36.0 new cases per 100,000 males and 25.5 new cases per 100,000 females. There is still more work to be done to reduce the rates of skin cancer in Minnesota.
Help raise awareness about the importance of protecting yourself and others from skin cancer by sharing this video on all of your social media platforms including: Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, Pinterest, and LinkedIn. Not sure how to caption the video? No problem! Minnesota Department of Health staff have created a sample of social media captions <LINK TO PDF> which can be shared with the video, but feel free to add your own personal twist!
To learn more about skin cancer and melanoma in Minnesota please visit:
MDH Melanoma Data Portal: https://data.web.health.state.mn.us/cancer_melanoma
MDH Melanoma Cancer Query: https://data.web.health.state.mn.us/cancer_query
Melanoma County Map: https://mndatamaps.web.health.state.mn.us/interactive/melanomacancer.html
To learn more about how to protect yourself and your loved ones from skin cancer please visit: https://www.cdc.gov/cancer/skin/basic_info/sun-safety.htm https://www.fda.gov/Drugs/ResourcesForYou/Consumers/BuyingUsingMedicineSafely/UnderstandingOver-the-CounterMedicines/ucm239463.htm
