Understanding skin cancer risk factors and ways to reduce your personal risk

Skin cancers are some of the most common cancers in the world. Each year in the UK over 171,000 people are diagnosed with skin cancer; that’s nearly 470 people every day. There are two main types of skin cancer, non-melanoma and melanoma.

The majority of skin cancers are caused by overexposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation, either from the sun, sunbeds or tanning lamps, but there are other important factors to be aware of which can increase your risk of developing skin cancer, including your age, your skin type and other medical conditions.

Dr Stephanie Ogden, Consultant Dermatologist at The Wilmslow Hospital, part of HCA Healthcare UK, tells us more about skin cancer risk factors and ways you can reduce your personal risk.

Firstly, I think it’s important to define what a cancer risk factor is. A risk factor is something which can increase your chance of being diagnosed with cancer, and different cancers have different risk factors associated with them.

Unfortunately, some of these risk factors like your age and genetics can’t be changed, whereas lifestyle risk factors like excessive UV exposure can be changed. Understanding skin cancer risk factors can help you be more aware and proactively manage them.

Sun and UV exposure

Overexposure to UV radiation is the biggest risk factor for skin cancer. This UV radiation can come from the sun, sunbeds or tanning lamps. UV radiation damages the DNA in your skin cells and when this damage accumulates over time it increases the risk of skin cancer.

The more times you experience sunburn, particularly if you were sunburned as a child or the sunburn blistered, the higher your risk of skin cancer.

Sun safety

The single best thing you can do for your skin is to be safe in the sun. Using (and regularly applying) a sun lotion and lip balm containing a high SPF (30+) and UVA protection, staying out of the sun during the hottest part of the day, which is  between 11am and 3pm in the UK, wearing a wide brimmed hat and using sunglasses which have UV protection, are all very effective ways to protect yourself.

I strongly recommend avoiding sunbeds. Sunbeds produce short, high intensity exposure to UV radiation and just one session can increase your risk of skin cancer. To put this in perspective, the World Health Organisation classify sunbed use as having an equivalent carcinogenic (cancer causing) risk to humans as cigarette smoking.

You can learn more about sun safety and how to best protect yourself here

Complexion

People of all skin tones, including people with more richly pigmented skin, can be diagnosed with skin cancer, but different types of skin are at greater risk of sun damage.

If you have white skin that burns easily, especially if you have red or fair hair, blue or green eyes and have lots of freckles, you are the most susceptible to sun damage and skin cancer.

Additionally, having lots of moles on your body puts you at a higher risk of melanoma and you should be particularly careful about exposing yourself to the sun. 

If you have black or brown skin, you have more melanin and more natural protection, so your chance of being diagnosed with skin cancer is lower, but you can still get it. In people with darker complexions, skin cancer is more likely to develop in parts of the body which aren’t regularly exposed to the sun, like the soles of the feet, palms of the hands, or beneath a nail. In these cases UV light is not thought to be the underlying cause.

Your risk of skin cancer may be raised if a close friend or relative has been affected, or you have an inherited condition.

This is partly because we have the same or very similar colouring and skin type as our closest relatives. If your relative was diagnosed with a melanoma before age 30, or you have more than one first degree relative who has been diagnosed with a melanoma your risk is higher.

Genetic factors

There is an inherited condition called familial atypical multiple mole syndrome (FAMMM) which can increase your risk of being diagnosed with melanoma. People with FAMMM will have a large number of moles or moles that are atypical, which means they may have an irregular shape and can be larger than usual. They may also have at least one close relative who’s had a melanoma, so a parent, sister, brother,

It's estimated that around 10% of melanomas are linked to inherited faulty genes. The gene that is associated with FAMMM is called CDKN2A.

Understanding your personal inherited risk

If you are concerned about hereditary risk of developing skin cancer, you might benefit from visiting a consultant geneticist to better understand your personal risk and the options available to you.

Research has shown that people with a weakened immune system are at a higher risk of developing skin cancer.

Sometimes our immune system can become weakened as a result of medical treatments, such as chemotherapy treatment or immunosuppressive therapies - which are commonly used after an organ transplant or to treat other conditions such as autoimmune diseases.

Some people can also have a compromised immune system due to other health conditions, such as lymphoma or HIV, and their risk of developing skin cancer is higher.

People living with these conditions, particularly if they are light skinned, should be very careful with sun exposure and may need to be screened for suspicious skin lesions.

Remember, you can reduce your risk of skin cancer by limiting your UV exposure, particularly if you have other risk factors, and getting to know your skin and how it looks normally so that you can examine it regularly for any suspicious changes and get them checked by an expert. Diagnosing skin cancer early makes it much easier to treat and can improve outcomes.

A consultant dermatologist is a doctor who specialises in multiple skin conditions including skin cancer.

If you are concerned about changes to your skin or would like to seek specialist advice on how to manage your risk of developing skin cancer, you can find and book an appointment with a consultant dermatologist at HCA Healthcare UK below.