Should Dermatologists Go Public? A Skin Cancer Screening Campaign at Recreation Centers

Abstract

Human herpesvirus 7 in patients with pityriasisis rosea: electron microscopy investigations and polymerase chain reaction in mononuclear cells, plasma and skin.

Analysis of clinical, dermoscopic and histopathological features of primary melanomas of patients with metastatic disease – a retrospective study at the Department of Dermatology, Medical University of Graz, 2000–2010

“…A possible bias regarding those studies is that patients attending screening programmes have a higher awareness for health care compared to general population. Moreover, screening programmes do not involve high‐risk patients for skin cancer . Interestingly, a recent long time retrospective study by Katalanic et al .…”

“…Moreover, screening programmes do not involve high-risk patients for skin cancer. 31,32 Interestingly, a recent long time retrospective study by Katalanic et al showed that a melanoma screening programme in Schleswig-Holstein (Germany) had an important impact on both melanoma mortality and morbidity. In fact, mortality dropped 40% after a population-wide screening programme in which an estimated 20% of individuals aged 20 years and older were screened.…”

Frequency, clinical and dermoscopic features of benign papillomatous melanocytic naevi (Unna type)

“…Our findings may be biased because the data were collected during a public health screening campaign on moles and melanoma, so recall bias 25 as well as prior knowledge that sunbathing was a risk factor for melanoma may have led to an under-reporting of sunbed use and number of sunburns. 26 Also screening campaigns attract primarily people with a distinct health behaviour (self-selection bias) 27,28 and the screening place too can be considered as bias, as only mobile and healthy persons are present in a recreation area. Additionally, the total number of naevi, atypical naevi and papillomatous naevi was only estimated, which was a concession to the second goal of the screening campaign as a tool of melanoma prevention, which made it necessary to examine as many subjects as possible.…”

Clinical Epidemiology of Invasive Cutaneous Malignant Melanoma in the Austrian Province Styria in the Years 2001–2003 and Its Relationship with Local Geographical, Meteorological and Economic Data

“…In Austria ‘Sonne ohne Reue’, a national education campaign, has been running for more than 15 years [31, 32], and in Styria the Austrian Cancer Aid/Styria has been providing a public screening program in public recreation areas called ‘.sun.watch.’ for over 10 years [33]. The education campaign was carried out with leaflets all over Styria, but the screening action of ‘.sun.watch.’ with about 1,000 participants per year was concentrated in the first years to the north-western parts of the province, in the investigated years to the north-eastern parts and since 2005 to the eastern and western parts.…”