Melanoma Skin Cancer News

August 1, 2022 — Edgewell Personal Care Co., the maker of Banana Boat sunscreen, is recalling a scalp spray because it contains trace levels of benzene, a chemical that can cause cancer at high levels.

June 14, 2022 — Experts advised not making a whale out of recent findings linking fish intake to deadly skin cancers.

June 9, 2022 — Researchers found 20% of Americans studied with the highest intake had about a one-quarter higher risk of developing the disease over 15 years, versus the 20% with the lowest fish consumption.

May 27, 2022 — A new survey by the American Academy of Dermatology found a sharp rise in both tanning and number of sunburns last year.

January 6, 2022 — A young woman has received a $10,000 scholarship for her medical education after alerting a Vancouver Canucks staff member about a cancerous mole.

August 9, 2021 — An experimental gel could be a potential alternative to surgery when treating basal cell carcinoma.

July 15, 2021 — Johnson & Johnson has issued a voluntarily recall after finding low levels of benzene, a known cancer-causing agent, in some samples.

June 21, 2021 — Survey suggests “that many people … believe skin cancer won’t happen to them.”

June 11, 2021 — It’s important to note that benzene is not an ingredient in sunscreen, and Valisure's petition suggests that the findings are a result of contamination somewhere in the manufacturing process.

May 28, 2021 — Summer is around the corner, and with the pandemic waning for many, the CDC encourages people to spend more time unmasked outdoors. But protecting yourself from the sun is more important than ever, and questions about sunscreen safety may make you wonder how to do it.

April 23, 2021 — A $4 sunscreen from Walmart performed well enough to be recommended and termed a "Best Buy" in this year's sunscreen ratings from Consumer Reports.

January 25, 2021 — Giving melanoma patients a "personalized" vaccine can prompt an anti-tumor immune response that lasts for years, an early study finds.

June 9, 2020 — Black Americans with melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer, wait longer for surgery than white patients, a new study finds.

May 22, 2020 — Chemical sunscreens offer the best protection and beat out those with mineral or natural ingredients such as titanium dioxide and zinc oxide, a new review from Consumer Reports finds.

March 6, 2020 — But bereaved people with the most serious form of skin cancer were 17% more likely to die from it than others.

February 19, 2020 — Researchers from Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston analyzed data culled from national surveys conducted from 2014 to 2018 and found that skin cancer rates were 8.1% among gay men, 8.4% among bisexual men, and 6.7% among heterosexual men.

February 18, 2020 — States with the highest UV-attributable incidence rates among all residents were: Utah, Delaware, Minnesota, New Hampshire, Oregon, Georgia, Washington and Montana.

October 11, 2019 — Getting a second opinion from a pathologist specially trained in skin lesions -- a dermatopathologist -- yields the most accurate results, the new study found.

October 9, 2019 — Researchers found that the incidence of head and neck melanoma rose nearly 4% a year from 1995 to 2001, and 1.2% a year from 2001 to 2014 in children and young adults.

July 31, 2019 — The study of around 125,000 Americans found that people with the highest intake of vitamin A lowered their risk of squamous cell skin cancer by around 15%

June 12, 2019 — The researchers have been developing a laser-based system designed to screen patients' blood from the outside -- spotting tumor cells as they pass through veins in the arm and eliminating the need for a blood draw.

May 21, 2019 — Overall, about seven out of 10 sunscreen recipes failed to adequately protect skin from dangerous ultraviolet (UV) rays, the study authors found.

May 7, 2019 — As melanoma cases continue to rise sharply, some dermatologists question whether screening people without symptoms has resulted in overdiagnosing melanoma, bringing unnecessary anxiety and treatments.

May 6, 2019 — Experts are quick to say the known risk from the sun's rays is greater than the potential risk posed by these chemicals. Keep using your sunscreen.

April 30, 2019 — The rankings include sections for best sprays, sticks and lip balms as well as those products considered safe for coral reefs.

March 21, 2019 — A two-ointment combo used to clear crusty skin growths known as actinic keratosis also has been found to greatly reduce the odds for squamous cell carcinomas (SCCs), the second most common form of skin cancer.

February 27, 2019 — New research suggests that a diet that's full of fiber appears to lead to more diverse intestinal bacteria (microbiome). In turn, a thriving gut microbiome is linked to a stronger response to an immune therapy for the aggressive skin cancer.

February 26, 2019 — Keytruda is the drug responsible for the remission of former President Jimmy Carter's cancer in 2015. Carter, then 90, had melanoma that spread to his brain and liver. Treatment with Keytruda appears to have cured him.

February 25, 2019 — In a study of more than 700 melanoma patients in the United Kingdom, smokers were 40 percent less likely to survive melanoma than people who hadn't smoked for at least 10 years before their diagnosis.

December 5, 2018 — Powered by the sun while designed to measure its rays, the patch automatically transmits sun readings to a user's smartphone. It works wet or dry, is fully reusable, and weighs next to nothing.

November 5, 2018 — Melanoma death rates were higher for men than for women, according to an analysis of World Health Organization data from 33 countries between 1985 and 2015.

October 18, 2018 — Contrary to the usual advice, a new study has found that, unless applied very heavily, skin creams did not raise the radiation dose to the skin during cancer treatment.

October 1, 2018 — Two cancer researchers -- James P. Allison, PhD, of the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, and Tasuku Honjo, MD, PhD, of Kyoto University in Japa-- received the 2018 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for discovering how the immune system can be harnessed to attack tumor cells, a finding that led to the development of immunotherapy drugs.

August 23, 2018 — Experts said the findings represent another step forward against advanced melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer. Once melanoma spreads to distant sites in the body, the prognosis has traditionally been grim. When it infiltrates the brain, the typical life expectancy has hovered around four to five months.

July 17, 2018 — On a hunch, a doctor injected the Gardasil, the HPV vaccine, directly into the tumors of a woman with advanced skin cancer. The tumors disappeared. Nobody thinks it should be standard treatment, but it will spur more testing.

July 12, 2018 — A therapy that harnesses the body’s immune system to target and destroy cancer cells has been found to help people with melanoma that has spread to the brain.

May 31, 2018 — The new study included just over 200 college students. The researchers  enlisted a computer program called "APRIL Age Progression Software," which was developed over the course of a five-year facial analysis involving 7,000 people representing various races, ages and lifestyles.

May 31, 2018 — The new study pitted a well-honed computer algorithm against 58 dermatologists, to see whether machine or humans were better at differentiating melanomas from moles.

May 11, 2018 — SPF, or sun protection factor, is a measure of how long sunscreen protects you from radiation from the sun that can damage your skin. Dermatologists may recommend natural sunscreens for children and others with sensitive skin.

April 16, 2018 — The drug also gained attention after former President Jimmy Carter announced in 2015 that Keytruda had beaten back his brain cancer.

March 20, 2018 — This recommendation, from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, updates a 2012 recommendation that advised doctors not begin this education until children reached the age of 10.

February 15, 2018 — Among men who received treatment for the potentially deadly cancer, obese patients lived an average of 47 percent longer than those with a healthy body weight, researchers found.

February 7, 2018 — Almost a quarter of people in the UK are ignoring signs they may be at an increased risk of skin cancer

February 5, 2018 — Unfortunately, baby boomers who baked themselves in baby oil during their youth are now paying the price as they age, with more than 70 percent of melanoma cases now being diagnosed in those over 55.

January 5, 2018 — The study tracked outcomes for just over 930 U.S. veterans who averaged 70 years of age.

December 13, 2017 — Dzierzek was a regular user of tanning beds in her youth. She was diagnosed with skin cancer at age 21.

November 7, 2017 — No matter what stage their cancer was, those who waited more than 90 days for surgical treatment were more likely to die.

October 16, 2017 — Wait could be more than 6 weeks longer than those with private insurance, study says

October 2, 2017 — Goal is to only perform one procedure, skin cancer specialist says