Clinical Trials Researchers Investigate Healthy Skin Protection Behaviour

Every year, hundreds of new clinical trials pop up in an attempt to advance medical science

. While many are focused on testing the efficacy of new drugs and treatment methods, one in particular that has only recently been open to recruitment will be investigating the efficacy of several coaching sessions and how they affect skin protection behavior of teenagers in Queensland.

These new clinical trials cant help but resurrect the age-old question of why protecting our skin is so important. The obvious answer is that it prevents skin cancer but how? Lets briefly discuss the causes of skin cancer, what preventive methods are available for it and how the clinical trials mentioned above are relevant to preventing it.

What Causes Skin Cancer?

The primary cause of skin cancer is over-exposure to ultraviolet radiation from the sun. Thus, conventional methods of preventing skin cancer include (but are not limited to): always using sunscreen of at least 15 SPF or higher, avoiding extensive exposure to the sun between the hours of 10 am to 4 pm, and wearing protective clothing such as a long-sleeve shirt and a hat when outdoors.

There are other causes of skin cancer that are still under investigation. These include smoking tobacco, ionizing and artificial UV radiation, immunosuppressive medication (known to increase the risk of skin cancer) and HPV infections.

Are There Different Types of Skin Cancer?

Yes. In fact, there are four main classifications of skin cancer as well as a precursor to one of them. According to the UCSF School of Medicine, they are:

Basal cell carcinoma characterized by raised, pink, waxy bumps that may bleed following injury.

Melanoma characterized by brown or black skin lesions with irregularities in symmetry, border and coloration.

Kaposis sarcoma Rare cancer of the cells that line blood vessels (endothelial cells)

Squamous cell carcinoma characterized by dull red, rough, scaly raised skin lesions

Actinic keratosis precursor to squamous cell carcinoma

How Common Is Skin Cancer?

According to a study conducted in the United States by dermatologist Howard Rogers, MD, PhD that lasted from 1992 to 2006, incidence of non-melanoma skin cancer increases an average of 4.2% per year. While it is the most common type of cancer in the United States, incidence of skin cancer is greatly surpassed in Australia and New Zealand (nearly four times as much than in the US, UK and Canada). With statistics like these, its no surprise that some clinical trials in Australia are focused on improving our sun protecting behaviour.

Tell Me More about the Clinical Trials Mentioned Earlier

Essentially, researchers will be launching an educational program that coaches teenagers in Queensland on sun protecting behaviour. Male and female students between the ages of 12 and 17 are eligible to join. The participants will be randomly split into two groups one group will receive the coaching (over the course of 3 weeks) at the start of the clinical trials and the other group will receive the coaching at the end of the clinical trials. With a target sample size of 400 and a questionnaire issued to all participants both before and after the clinical trials, researchers hope to gain new insight into how we can teach others to adopt effective sun protecting behaviour in order prevent incidence of skin cancer.

by: Max Renouf

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