Return to Transcripts main page
American Morning
Doctor Offers Tips on Avoiding Skin Cancer
Aired May 29, 2001 - 11:26 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Well, in health news, the summer vacation season is upon. That means more time in the sun, and that means you'd better stock up on sun screen or skin cancer could be in your future.
Joining us from New York is Dr. Jonathan Lewis. He has produced several technologies applied to cancer and infectious disease.
Doctor, good to see you.
DR. JONATHAN LEWIS, SKIN CANCER RESEARCHER: Good to see you, too. Thank you, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Absolutely. Why don't we start with talking about who is at most at risk here. I'm assuming everybody is at risk, but there some who are more at risk, correct?
LEWIS: For sure. I think that the important thing is that everyone's at risk but there are certain subsets that are greater risk. So, people who have a family history of melanoma for sure, are at more risk, those with fair skin, and those who get a lot of exposure. But as you started out, basically, all of us are at risk.
PHILLIPS: And we've devised a graphic here of some specifics: blond, red-hair, fair skin and freckles; let's talk about a couple of these exact risk factors here.
LEWIS: I think that have you summarized it well, and it's really all of the above that represent risk factors, and it's in those individuals in particular that exposure to a lot of sun is going to in one way or the other make them at great risk for skin cancer.
PHILLIPS: Now, for those who are big sun bunnies growing up. I mean, I grew up in Southern California. That was the thing, was to go to the beach. Is it true that you won't start seeing this until years and years later because it's been a long time for me, and I'm starting to get all kinds of freckles that I have to get checked out?
LEWIS: That is correct, yes. The exposure, in fact, can even be in childhood, and I think that's also important to remember. But amongst all of this, there is good news and the good news is that it is preventable to a certain extent, and so that for one's children and the population in general, trying to avoid too long sun or in particular, when you go into the sun, using sun screen is very important.
The other good news is that, although it's in its deadliest form melanoma, a lot of people will die of this, significant strides are being made in terms of developing new treatment, new technologies and these are being applied broadly now.
PHILLIPS: OK, I want to talk about those treatments in moment, but did you just say in child birth, as in if I was bearing a child my child could be at risk?
LEWIS: No, no, not child birth but childhood.
PHILLIPS: Oh, childhood. You totally got my attention. OK, well, before we get to the treatment, let's talk about how we can check. For example, how do we know if it may be melanoma or not?
LEWIS: I think the very important thing is to understand that everyone is at risk. The next important thing is that part of a routine physical exam, the skin should always be checked and then, following on that, one can check one's own skin. And in particular, all of us have moles throughout our whole body, and if you notice any charge in those, it should be followed up, it should be evaluated, preferably by a dermatologist.
PHILLIPS: All right, now, let's talk about the treatments, Dr. Lewis.
LEWIS: There are several new treatments that are being applied, and this attributed to huge investment by the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industry and academia. A lot of these are centered around vaccines, and one of the things about melanoma is that in its fullest form, it does not respond to conventional treatment. But several vaccines are being tried, and some of these are showing at least initial good success. So, there is good news, I believe, on the horizon.
PHILLIPS: Very good news. Meanwhile, if you do spend a lot of time in the sun or have, get those check-ups on a regular basis. All right, chief medical officer and chairmen of the medical board of Antigenics, thanks so much, Dr. Jonathan Lewis. Thanks so much.
LEWIS: Thank you very much, Kyra. Thank you.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
