Cutaneous melanoma accounts for 2% of cancer diagnoses in the Valencian Community.

VALENCIA (EFE). Cutaneous melanoma accounts for 2% of all new cancer diagnoses in the Valencian Community, of which 668 new cases were detected last year. of which 318 are in Valencia275 in Alicante and 75 in Castellon.

This was announced on Thursday, World Melanoma Day, by sources in the Ministry of Health, who clarified that the number of new cases is the same in both sexes (337 in men and 331 in women), and the incidence rate is at 14.1 per 100,000 people. for men and 11.6 per 100,000 for women.

As for the average age of diagnosis, it is 65 years for men and 64 years for women. Specific incidence rates increase with age in both sexes, higher in men over 65 years of age and slightly higher in women from 30 to 54 years of age.

The relative survival rate of melanoma five years after diagnosis has in recent years been lower in men (78%) than in women (85%), and age-specific mortality rates are 2.7 deaths per 100,000 men and 1.6 deaths per 100,000 women. Men are 70% more likely to die from melanoma than women.

Melanoma is a type of skin cancer that develops when melanocytes (the cells that give the skin its tanned appearance) grow out of control; Its main cause is exposure to ultraviolet radiation, emitted naturally from the sun or from artificial sources such as tanning beds and devices. Light-skinned people are also at greater risk.

Coordinator of the Valencian Community Cancer Strategy, Carlos Campsexplained that although with immunotherapy “the results are very good, melanoma still has a fairly serious prognosis, and therefore early diagnosis is very important, but above all, prevention.”

As stated, in the population over 40 or 50 years of age, special attention needs to be paid to early diagnosis, as damage to the skin may already have been done and we should be very alert to signs of early disease and seek medical attention. a dermatologist if you suspect a formation that darkens, changes in size, bleeds or itches.

Camps urged the general public to always use sun protection every day, especially in the summer and spring.

The ABCD rule can help you differentiate a normal mole from a melanoma: Asymmetry (half the mole is not the same as the other half), Borders (irregular, blurred or poorly defined borders), Color (different colors in the lesion) and diameter (when the mole is more than six millimeters or increases in size).