The American Cancer Society recommends periodic skin examination as part of any cancer related check-up depending on a person's age and gender.¹ Individuals with a history of melanoma should have a full body exam at least annually and perform regular self-exams for new and changing moles.⁷

• More than 1 million new cases of skin cancer will be diagnosed in the United States this year.¹
• Basal cell and squamous cell carcinomas are the two most common forms of skin cancer, but are easily treated if detected early.¹
• Current estimates are that 1 in 5 Americans will develop skin cancer in their lifetime.²
• Melanoma is the most common form of cancer for young adults 25-29 years old and the second most common form of cancer for adolescents and young adults 15-29 years old.³
• Melanoma is increasing faster in females 15-29 years old than males in the same age group.³
• In females 15-29 years old, the torso is the most common location for developing melanoma which may be due to high-risk tanning behaviors.³
• Melanoma in individuals 10-39 years old is highly curable with five-year survival rates exceeding 90 percent.³
• 1 in 58 men and women will be diagnosed with melanoma during their lifetime. Caucasians and men over 50 years of age are at a higher risk of developing melanoma than the general population.⁴
• In 2008, there were about 116,500 new cases of melanoma — 54,020 noninvasive (in situ) and 62,480 invasive (34,950 men and 27,530 women).¹
• One American dies of melanoma almost every hour (every 62 minutes). In 2008, 8,420 deaths were attributed to melanoma — 5,400 men and 3,020 women.¹
• The World Health Organization estimates that as many as 65,161 people a year worldwide die from too much sun, mostly from malignant skin cancer.⁵
• More than 75 percent of skin cancer deaths are from melanoma.¹
• The five-year survival rate for people whose melanoma is detected and treated before it spreads to the lymph nodes is 99 percent.¹
• In 2004, the total direct cost associated with the treatment for non-melanoma skin cancer was $1.5 billion.⁶
• Five-year survival rates for regional and distant stage melanomas are 65% and 15%, respectively.¹

¹American Cancer Society. 2008 Cancer Facts and Figures. http://www.cancer.org/downloads/STT/2008CAFFfinalsecured.pdf. ² Robinson JK. Sun Exposure, Sun Protection, and Vitamin D. JAMA 2005; 294: 1541-43. ³Cancer Epidemiology in Older Adolescents & Young Adults. SEER AYA Monograph Pages 53-57. 2007. ⁴Melanoma of the Skin, Cancer Fact Sheets, National Cancer Institute, SEER database, 2007. http://seer.cancer.gov. ⁵World Health Organization, Solar ultraviolet radiation: Global burden of disease from solar ultraviolet radiation. Environmental Burden of Disease Series, N.13. 2006. ⁶Bickers DR, Lim HW, Margolis D et al. The burden of skin diseases: 2004 a joint project of the American Academy of Dermatology Association and the Society for Investigative Dermatology. Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology 2006; 55: 490-500. ⁷Berg A. Screening for skin cancer. US Preventive Services Task Force, 2007.