While skin cancer is often associated with fair-skinned individuals, it’s important to recognize that people with darker pigments are also at risk.
In fact, skin cancer is often more deadly for people of color because it’s often diagnosed at a later stage when it’s more difficult to treat.
On this episode, we talk about the factors that increase the risk of skin cancer in people with darker skin tones, the importance of early detection and strategies for prevention.
Guests:
- Dr. Andrew Alexis, a dermatologist and president of the Skin of Color Society.
- Dr. Valerie Harvey, a dermatologist, director for Hampton Roads Center for Dermatology in Virginia and a former president of the Skin of Color Society.
- Ana Aragon, a Mayo Clinic medical student, future dermatologist and a journalist covering health care disparities. She is completing her master’s in mass communication at Arizona State University.
Afterward, we talked with Nicole Hamm, executive director of Jacksonville’s Blue Zones Project.
The Blue Zones Project is a community-led, well-being improvement initiative designed to enable residents to “live better, longer lives with lower rates of chronic diseases. The project is designed to make healthy choices easier through permanent changes to the environment and social networks.
Hamm talks more about the event happening in Jacksonville on June 3.
"What's Health Got to Do with It?" is a talk program from WJCT in Jacksonville that examines the intersection of health care and daily life.
The host is neurologist Dr. Joe Sirven.
Click on the Listen button above to hear the program.
