What’s Going Around : Skin Cancer Prevention

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (KY3) - We’re past daylight saving time and officially into spring now and the extra sunshine is a welcome sight for many. If you’re back from spring break with a fresh tan, there’s something you want to keep in mind.

″I think sometimes it’s hard when you start thinking, okay, it’s March, the sun’s not very hot but we’re just starting to see those beginnings of longer days and we don’t necessarily start thinking about skin cancer risks,” said Cindy Griesse, a physician assistant at Mercy.

Griessel said our skin is more at risk than we may realize.

“We need to be more vigilant with even just a daily sunscreen on our faces.,” said Griessel. “If we’re going out for walks or if we’re doing yard work, we need to be vigilant because the rays are intense and we don’t necessarily see skin cancer right away, it appears years down the road.”

Griessel said there’s an easy way to remember what you’re looking for regarding skin cancer.

“I always tell my patients A B C D E,” said Griessel. “A stands for asymmetric. So anything that all of a sudden used to be round and is no longer or has become somewhat irregular. B stands for border. Looking at just a change in the border, it may become irregular, it may become discolored. D is for diameter. Anything that you see suddenly that was only a pencil eraser size flat mole and now it’s doubled in size, needs to be looked at. E just strictly stands for evolution. So anything that you suddenly see that wasn’t there before or has changed.”

In other parts of the Ozarks this week Lake Regional Health System said they are seeing a large number of strep throat cases, upper respiratory viral illnesses, zero flu cases, and minimal Covid-19 cases. At Citizens Memorial Healthcare in Bolivar they are seeing upper respiratory infections, strep throat, Covid-19, and viral intestinal infections in their clinics. In their emergency rooms, they are seeing overall lower patient volumes, but still seeing patients for chest pain, shortness of breath, and abdominal pain. At Coxhealth they’re seeing ear infections, abdominal pain, urinary tract infections, back pain, and orthopedic injuries and fractures.

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