A study published 5 October by Johns Hopkins University indicates that some children have a greater risk of suffering from invasive melanoma than do adults. The study suggests there are some profound biological differences between childhood and adult melanoma.
The study examined the medical records of hundred of melanoma patients, both children and young adults. Findings indicated that children under 10 were nearly six times as likely as young adults with same-thickness tumors to have cancer cells in nearby lymph nodes, indicating that the skin tumors had grown significantly beyond their original sites.
Melanoma remains relatively rare in children: less than 4 percent of cases occur in pediatric patients. But because of this, both diagnosis and treatment can be dangerously delayed. Dr Bernard Cohen, director of pediatric dermatology at Hopkins Children’s Hospital, says, “I advise parents to use sun screen religiously on infants and children during outdoor activities year round.”
Enough said.
