Skin Care Pays Off

Men are not renowned for taking a lot of care with their skin. Whether as teenagers or older it does not seem to happen, especially in Australia. We are too macho.......or stupid. My local doctor used to say "if you are fair skinned and blue eyed - you are a skin cancer suspect"...........he is pretty spot on I think. Yet here we see so many young people very red skinned after most weekends - too much sun, too little protection.

I have recently had another skin cancer removed........from the right forearm, a condition commonly and cynically called "driver's arm syndrome". Yes, simply caused mainly through hanging the right arm on the door sill while driving. Maybe not so likely today, with a lot vehicles air-conditioned, especially in hot areas of Australia.

But, I, like many, who have done many hundreds of thousands of kilometres driving in those times where all airconditioning was through an open window, had an arm on the window sill. About 35 years of doing that is now causing a few problems.

I have had quite a few minor skin cancers removed before, on the same arm, and a few years ago used a therapy with a cream to pick up a lot of incipient damaged pre cancerous cells, including the top of the knuckles [ holding the steering wheel]. This one was larger and needed quite a few stitches to close it after the relatively minor surgery with a local anaesthetic. And the wound has been a bit sore too, since.

But there is good news too..........even though I have spent a lot of time surfing and swimming, sailing and other outdoor sports, I have little skin damage on the face and back, legs etc. Maybe it is those areas that received more sun block cream too.

My mother always insisted we use the old fashioned white or pink zinc cream as younger kids, keep out of the midday sun [ that was easy - surf is better early am anyway before the wind is strong] and as an adult sunblock creams have been used - usually 30+. So that has paid off so far. But the poor old right arm has suffered. Probably missed out on treatment!

With this surgery being done last Wednesday, it has meant a very quiet Easter.