"How to Skin Check" Video Shows Older Men How to Check for Melanoma

A new research program has successfully identified a video that shows men how to check their skin for melanoma and other skin cancers.

The research project was led by the researchers at the University of Queensland and involved over 900 Queensland men, aged around 50 years. The 'How to skin check' video was effective in alerting men on the importance of skin checks.

The study was led by Associate Professor Monika Janda. In this, 469 men were shown the video that educated them how to examine their skin and also encouraged them to get clinical skin checkups done if they notice any changes in their skin. Another group of 461 men were given just written material about skin cancer awareness.  

"We found that the men receiving the video intervention once they visited a doctor were more likely to receive a whole-body skin check than those receiving only written information," said Professor Janda. "This is a great result because men in that age group are known to be less likely to have those checks."

Overall, the researchers diagnosed a total of 69 skin cancer cases through clinical skin examinations during the seven-month study. A majority of them belonged to the group receiving video interventions.  

"Our research found that skin lesions that needed some form of management were found in 76 per cent of men who visited a doctor for a skin check during the seven-month study period. Two melanomas, 29 squamous cell carcinomas and 38 basal cell carcinomas were diagnosed, with a higher proportion of skin cancers diagnosed in the group undertaking video intervention," researchers said.

The study highlights that video intervention was effective in increasing skin awareness among men above the age 50. The video, apart from assisting the men through the self-examination process, also helped users get more familiar with their skin so that they are aware of any changes.

The self-examination video that features Ian Healey, an Australian cricketer, may be useful in boosting men to go for a clinical skin examination.

The team plans on taking this program to a wider scale by creating DVDs and also by making it easily accessible to men above 50 years of age. It is the older men who are more likely to be diagnosed with melanoma and their melanoma is mostly fatal.

The American Cancer Society estimates that at present, more than 120,000 new cases of melanoma in the US are diagnosed in a year. In 2014, an estimated 68,130 of the total will be invasive melanomas - 43,890 in males and 32,210 in women.