With the risk of earning melanoma, which turns a seemingly banal birthmark into a deadly disease, doctors have long frightened lovers of frying in the summer sun. However, is everything really so fatal and hopeless? Is there more truth or myth in talking about moles? For clarification, we turned to the professor, doctor of medical sciences, leading researcher of the R. N. N. Blokhin to Lev Demidov.
Myth 1. Moles are skin weaknesses
Not weak points, but rather her defect. According to Professor Demidov, a pigment spot (nevus) that is present from birth or acquired with age is the result of the transfer of pigment cells of melanocytes from the depths of tissues to the surface of the skin, forming cell clusters. On average, at birth, a person can have up to 10 moles. Over the course of life, their number increases. And not every mole develops into melanoma. The vast majority of dark markings on our body belong to fibropapilloma nevi, which are completely harmless.
Myth 2. The most dangerous are large convex moles
To some extent, this is true. Medium and large moles require increased attention. However, very small moles - the so-called dysplastic nevi, the precursors of melanoma, can also degenerate into malignant ones. In this case, it is not at all necessary that they protrude above the surface of the skin. Both convex and flat moles can pose a threat. In women, dangerous moles are most often localized on the legs. For men - on the back.
Promotional video:
Myth 3. Melanoma is a hereditary disease. We are already born with dangerous moles
Yes and no. In any case, long-term medical observations indicate: 2/3 of cases of melanoma are not congenital, but acquired origin. The nevus degeneration process lasts for many years. Scientific evidence suggests that it takes five to ten years. And this is the greatest insidiousness of melanoma. A person can live for years with a time bomb on his body and not know that his life is in great danger.
Myth 4. In order to earn melanoma, you need to be severely burned several times
There is such a theory. And she, according to Demidov, is not without foundation. Especially if a person got a skin burn for the first time in childhood. Research in recent years has shown that every sunburn received at a tender age dramatically increases the risk of developing melanoma in adulthood. Representatives of the first and second phototypes are most at risk here - white-skinned, red-haired and blue-eyed. Going south, these people need to be especially careful. Fortunately, the overwhelming majority of Russians belong to the third phototype with good skin adaptability. But Professor Demidov does not advise them to fry in the sun either.
Myth 5. The sun is to blame for everything
Not always. There are cases when melanoma occurred in people who have never left the northern latitudes and have never sunbathed. Although, of course, excessive exposure to the sun is an important factor in the occurrence of melanoma. After all, tanning is nothing more than a natural protection of the skin from ultraviolet rays. Under the influence of ultraviolet radiation, the nucleus, the genetic code of the melanocytes constituting the nevus, is affected, the process of their dying is disrupted. As a result, the "delayed" cells are reborn, forming colonies of "crazy" cells, which in the end can start a tumor process.
Myth 6. The main factor in the development of melanoma is the trauma of a "bad" mole
Don't touch her and she won't "bite". One of the most common and most annoying misconceptions about melanoma. Experts never tire of repeating: the sooner you remove a potentially dangerous mole, the less likely it is that the process of its rebirth will go too far. Thanks to similar tactics, in America and Australia, where a real epidemic of skin cancer broke out in recent decades, the percentage of deaths from melanoma has declined.
You need to regularly study the map of your body, carefully monitoring all changes in its "landscape". If necessary, seek the help of loved ones: we have no eyes on our back. If among your moles there are those that cause you anxiety, do not delay, go to the doctor!
