Melanoma Education Blog
In-Depth Education on Early Self-Detection of Melanoma
May 9, 2019 | April Pulliam
Skin Checks: My How You’ve Changed
Skin checks have always been important to me. As a preteen, I obsessed over examining my skin–looking in all the right places including my back, stomach, hairline, and even my feet. I left no stone unturned– no area unchecked.
April 1, 2019 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
The Melanoma Education Foundation Presents An Evening with the Singing Trooper
The Melanoma Education Foundation will present An Evening with the Singing Trooper, a Benefit Concert in Memory of Keri McCarthy, taking place at Anthony’s of Malden featuring Dan Clark, the Singing Trooper.
March 5, 2019 | Marianne Banister, Claire's Mother
Claire’s Story
No worries, they said. “Kids don’t get melanoma.” They were wrong.
February 21, 2019 | Amanda Carpenter, MEF Ambassador
“That will never happen to me.”
Like so many teenagers, I sat in the sun for hours slathered in tanning oil. I promised my mother I would wear sunscreen, but my blistering red skin always revealed my lie.
November 15, 2018 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
MEF Evening of Perspectives
In addition to the wonderful food, music and auction, MEF also used this event as a platform to recognize members of the medical and educational community who have demonstrated a commitment to our mission of providing education focused on Melanoma early detection and prevention.
October 12, 2018 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
The Impact of MEF Melanoma Lessons
The goal of this survey was to gain insight into how high school students, middle school students, and teachers were impacted by the MEF Melanoma Lessons presented in their schools. Here is what we found…
August 29, 2018 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
The Myths of Melanoma: Part 1
August 13, 2018 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
The ABCDs or EFGs of Melanoma
A visual guide to help identify suspicious skin blemishes.
July 27, 2018 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
The Melanoma Equation and Early Detection
July 13, 2018 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
The Fairest Kids of All…Need to Do More to Protect Their Skin from Melanoma
Think that it is enough to apply sunscreen for your family beach days, kids soccer games or just doing yard work on the weekend? Think again.
June 4, 2018 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Non-Melanoma Black Skin Growths
It is important to understand that suspicious-appearing growth often turn out to be either benign, or a lesser form of skin cancer, than the potentially lethal melanoma.
May 25, 2018 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
No Clean Pill of Health: A Skin Cancer Scam
In the 19th century, they were called “Snake-Oil Salesmen”; men who traveled from town-to-town pitching useless beverages that they touted as the cure for whatever ails you. They still exist today…
May 19, 2018 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Can UV Curing of Fingernail Gels Cause Melanoma?
Skin cancer is the most common cancer in the world. Yet there is still a long way to go to educate the public and dispel myths.
May 11, 2018 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Is a Daily Aspirin Regimen a New Melanoma Risk for Men?
Aspirin, a derivative of tree bark, has in one form or another been used to reduce pain in people for millennia. New research has revealed an awful side-effect for men who take aspirin on a regular basis.
May 4, 2018 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Four Ways to Save Lives from Melanoma
everal highly-effective ways exist with which to reach out and educate countess people instantaneously. This blog post focuses on four specific methods to get the message on melanoma out to a wide audience.
April 27, 2018 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Basal Cell Carcinoma
Unlike advanced melanoma, tBasal Cell Carcinoma (BCC) is rarely fatal. However, it can cause extensive skin damage and should be taken seriously.
April 6, 2018 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Dog-gone Wow! Canines Can Smell Skin Cancer, Melanoma
It has often been said that dogs are Man’s Best Friend. But the truth is that, within the world of medicine, they’re everyone’s best friend.
March 31, 2018 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Atypical Moles vs. Melanoma
Many people know that melanoma is the deadliest form of skin cancer. But what are atypical moles? Are they cancerous?
March 22, 2018 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
15 Minutes Could Save You 15 Lives or More
The goals of our mission are two-fold: teach teens how to look for and report any potential skin cancer, and teach them how they can protect themselves from getting it in the first place.
March 8, 2018 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Melanoma Questions: A True or False Quiz
Take the Melanoma Quiz—even if you guess incorrectly, you’ll still come out way ahead by having educated yourself about melanoma.
February 28, 2018 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Save Lives from Melanoma by Running the New York City Marathon
The Melanoma Education Foundation (MEF) is proud to be entering our 8th straight year as an official charity partner of the New York Road Runners Association (NYRR).
February 24, 2018 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Window Pain: A Clear Connection to Melanoma
Unprotected exposure to UV rays while driving can cause skin damage and melanoma, which can eventually lead to the same unfortunate result as a fatal car wreck.
February 16, 2018 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Melanoma Myths
Some myths can be fun or interesting. Myths about health and disease, however, are a whole different ballgame. Believing the wrong ones can lead to injury, sickness and even death.
February 11, 2018 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Occupational Risk of Melanoma
We rarely hear of any connections between specific vocations and melanoma, but such relationships do exist.
February 2, 2018 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Melanoma Potpourri
A melanoma refresher: review your knowledge of preventing and identifying this dangerous form of skin cancer.
January 26, 2018 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Eye Freckles: A New Melanoma Risk Factor in Younger Individuals
Most people walking along a train track would step off it if they saw a train coming at them. Spotting but then ignoring a melanoma is like seeing that train, and then watching it as it runs right through, and destroys, your body.
January 18, 2018 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
All Skin Cancer Lessons are not Created Equal
When trying to educate adolescents and teens about skin cancer, it’s very important that the information presented is not only correct, but also properly focused. Words that fall on primarily deaf ears are useless; rendering the material ineffective.
January 12, 2018 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
2018 Projected U.S. Melanoma Incidence
The American Cancer Society published an annual list of 2018 projections, an online report where they announce their numeric expectations for the development of different cancers in the United States.
January 5, 2018 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Nodular and Radial Melanoma Revisited
It cannot be stated or reiterated enough that with any melanoma, the speed of discovery and treatment is far and away the single largest determining factor regarding whether a patient lives or dies.
December 22, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Toenail and Fingernail Melanoma
Toenail and Fingernail Melanoma, (more commonly known as Subungual Melanoma) is a rare type of the disease. Like Ocular Melanoma, subungual is one of the few melanomas that medical science does not believe to be caused by UV (ultraviolet) ray exposure.
December 14, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Melanoma on the Scalp
Six percent of melanomas develop on the scalp and neck but are responsible for 10% of all deaths resulting from the disease.
December 5, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Desmoplastic Melanoma
Desmoplastic melanoma is an uncommon type of melanoma most often diagnosed in pale-toned Caucasian men who are of advancing age, or who are elderly.
November 25, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Spitz Nevus: Mistaken Melanoma in Children
It is important to know that melanoma has several ugly, benign “mimics” that may look similar, yet aren’t harmful. One such mimic is called Spitz nevus.
November 16, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Merkel Cell Carcinoma
Melanoma, the worst form of skin cancer, goes from nearly a 100% cure rate if caught earlier enough, to a painfully fatal disease if caught too late. But Merkel Cell Carcinoma is even more dangerous than melanoma, because its speed of growth is much faster.
November 9, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Important New Information on Spotting Nodular Melanoma
Many people who look for nodular melanoma concentrate their focus on finding new or changing dark-hued, irregularly-shaped moles and skin growths, which is consistent with ABCDE. That is, it was- prior to a recent, vital change.
November 2, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
More Tanning Salons Ignoring State Laws
Washington D.C. joins more than 40 states that have put laws in place to protect minors from the highly dangerous act of indoor tanning. While that is a good thing in theory, laws are useless when they’re not obeyed.
October 26, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Melanoma Mimics
To better illustrate the appearance of mimics, we’ll present six photographs of common skin conditions that have been mistaken for melanoma.
October 18, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Oral Melanoma
Oral melanoma is a rare type of melanoma not caused by UV rays. It accounts for 1% of all melanomas, and is most common in Asians.
October 5, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Age Spots and Melanoma
If you’re a nonmedical layperson, you know them as age spots, sun spots or liver spots. If you’re a doctor, they’re solar lentigines or actinic lentigines.
September 27, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Melanoma Does Not Discriminate: The Story of Jacqueline Smith
One of the more difficult tasks when educating the public about melanoma, is helping to dispel the notion that it’s a “whites only” disease. While it’s true that whites are statistically much more susceptible to melanoma, it can develop in any person from any race.
September 21, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Sun Safety-Based Lessons are Ineffective for Educating Teens About Skin Cancer
Over the 18 years since the Melanoma Education Foundation (MEF) was founded, we’ve learned that the success of sun safety instruction varies, depending on the age of the students.
September 13, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Melanomas with No Identified Primary Site
Most melanomas are initially discovered on the skin. However, in a small percentage (5%-10%) of people who’ve had a recent melanoma diagnosis, the disease has spread beyond their skin and into other organs or lymph nodes; with little-to-none of the initial blemish left visible.
September 6, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Expediting a Dermatologist Appointment
Dermatologist appointments are often scheduled 3 or more months in advance. That’s too long to wait if you’ve found something suspicious on your skin.
August 30, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
CHANGE: The Most Important Melanoma Warning Sign
The appearance of melanomas can vary widely from one to another. They develop in many difference colors, sizes and other unique visual characteristics.
August 23, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
A Melanoma Menu
There is a lot to learn about melanoma. Here is an overview of our previously published posts that discuss many topics and subtopics.
August 17, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Intermittent Sun Exposure and Melanoma Risk
One of these beliefs is that melanoma incidence is highest in southern states, and among people who consistently spend time out in the sun. While it is true that skin cancer impacts both, it’s not the whole truth.
August 11, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Moles and Sun: A Dangerous Combination
exposure to dangerous ultraviolet (UV) rays from our sun can create mutations on moles that cause nevi to turn from safely benign, to dangerously malignant (cancerous).
August 3, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Indirectly Speaking: The Impact of Secondary UV Exposure
Even among those who make a concerted effort to practice sun-safety, there remains a tendency to forget about the impact that secondary, or indirect, sun exposure has on our skin.
July 27, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Mole Mapping
If you have high skin cancer risk factors, or those who have over 50 moles, or too many moles to easily track yourself, mole mapping is a useful tool. Even better, the procedure is non-invasive and completely painless.
July 20, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
SPF: Fact versus Fiction
If a user misunderstands how a sunscreen’s Sun Protection Factor (SPF) works, or if the product is incorrectly applied, the level of protection received can be considerably lower than he or she believes it to be. That can be very dangerous.
July 14, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Melanoma Risk Factors
There’s no question that a primary trigger in developing skin cancer (and its most lethal form, melanoma) is unprotected exposure to the sun’s ultraviolet (UV) rays. However, there are some factors that can increase our susceptibility. Some of them are within our control, and, unfortunately, some of them are not.
July 5, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Freckles versus Moles
Clearing up the confusion between the two skin conditions.
June 29, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Redheads and Melanoma
While melanoma is certainly an equal opportunity menace, it can and does play favorites. Unfortunately, people who have natural red hair are one group of them.
June 21, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
MEF’s Focus on Education Over Research
We discovered that most middle and high school health and wellness educators were uninformed about melanoma. As such, they don’t ever mention anything about it in their health classes. That is a huge lost opportunity!
June 15, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Can Smartphone Apps Detect Melanoma?
There is perhaps no greater cause for excitement than when new scientific technology is married to some aspect of medical science. And it appears that we may right now be on the cusp of another such achievement.
June 7, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Squamous Cell Carcinoma
Unlike melanoma, Squamous Cell Carcinoma (SCC) (SQUAY-muss) is a fairly-common type of skin cancer that is not typically fatal. Just like melanoma though, if it’s left undiagnosed, it too can turn lethal.
June 1, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Skin Cancer Education Re-imagined
The Melanoma Education Foundation (MEF) has been making great strides with its middle and high school-focused skin cancer lessons. They are designed to be efficient, easy-to-use, and require virtually no prep work.
May 22, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Test Your Melanoma Knowledge
We have prepared for you a brief, visual quiz. It’s specifically designed to demonstrate that judging a skin growth on its looks alone is simply not enough.
May 16, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
What to do if a Suspicious Growth is Found During a Skin Self-exam
One of the major tenets essential to melanoma education is for everyone to perform regular skin self-examinations. All it entails is a few minutes once a month during which you simply check over your skin from head to toe. (And palms to soles).
May 11, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
SPF is Far Less Important than How Much is Applied
Iit’s important to apply the correct amount of sun screen This is the only way to ensure that the sun protection factor (SPF) sun-shield that you’re actually receiving is identical to what is stated on the product.
May 3, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Melanoma and the Hispanic and Latino Communities
For those who work to spread melanoma education and awareness, one of the largest (and most frustrating) obstacles to hurdle is the misconception that the disease only affects Caucasians. To some degree, it impacts every single race on Earth.
April 27, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Teacher Survey Confirms Effectiveness of Melanoma Lessons
MEF founder and president Steve Fine and Emerson student Marissa Picerno created a web-based survey to measure how effective the Foundation’s lessons have been.
April 20, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Vitamin D and Sun Exposure
re is, to some extent, confusion within the public as to whether sun exposure is needed to obtain the amount of Vitamin D sufficient to meet our bodily requirements. And, if it is; how much?
April 13, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Acral Lentiginous Melanoma
Melanoma is a color-blind, unbiased menace to people of all ethnic backgrounds. Acral Lentiginous Melanoma (ALM) is a symptom-free branch of melanoma that is most common in blacks, Hispanics and Asians; but also affects whites and other light-skinned races.
April 4, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Ocular Melanoma
Ocular melanoma (Officially, Uveal melanoma) is a rare form of eye cancer. It’s a belligerent cancer that can develop anywhere within a trio of sections inside the eye, (Iris, ciliary body, choroid or posterior uvea).
March 30, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Normal Moles vs. Atypical Moles
Although you’ve surely seen them countless times, you may not be aware that there are two types: normal moles, and atypical moles. (Officially, dysplastic nevi).
March 23, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Appearance Limitations in the Self-Detection of Melanoma
Melanomas can appear with a variety of looks, and looks can be deceiving.
March 16, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
In-Situ Melanoma
In-Situ (In place) Melanoma is also known as Stage 0 Melanoma and Hutchinson’s melanotic freckle. with melanoma the lower number you have the better.
March 8, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Childhood Melanoma
Melanoma is truly an awful disease. Children, who are just getting started in the world, should never have to suddenly face their own mortality.
March 2, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Self-examining for Early Signs of Melanoma
Self-examination is among the most vital weapons we all have in the fight against melanoma. There is no doubt that the more people the melanoma awareness community can reach with this message, the more lives it can save.
February 23, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Radial and Nodular Melanoma
Skin cancer is the world’s most common cancer, and its worst form is melanoma. Learn what to look for in the two main types of melanoma: radial and nodular.
February 16, 2017 | Stephen Fine, Founder and President
Introducing the Melanoma Education Foundation’s New Blog
With this initial post, however, we’d like to tell you a little about ourselves, our goals, and what to expect going forward. This is so that we may acquaint ourselves with those who are learning about us for the first time through this blog.