The sun is shining, and after a long, hard Illinois winter, it sure feels good. But we know over exposure to the sun is not good for us. According to the CDC, skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the United States. SIU dermatologist Dr. Stephen Stone encourages people to do self skin examinations for changes in their skin and to have skin screenings by a dermatologist to detect skin cancer in its early stages.
Knowing the ABC’s of skin cancer can help. If you find any of the following characteristics, have your suspicious areas checked by a dermatologist:
‘A’ is for Asymmetry
Normal moles are symmetrical. If you draw an imaginary line through half your mole and the two halves don’t look the same, have it checked by a dermatologist.
‘B’ is for Border
Melanoma is often characterized by uneven borders. If the border or edges of your mole or freckle is ragged, blurred, or irregular, it could indicate skin cancer.
‘C’ is for Color
Normal moles are usually the same in color throughout. A mole with varying shades of color of tan, brown, black, blue, white or red may be a sign of skin cancer.
‘D’ is for Diameter
The general rule is that a suspicious mole is larger than a pencil eraser in diameter.
‘E’ is for Evolving
An evolving mole, one that shrinks, grows, itches, becomes raised, bleeds or changes color, should be looked at by a physician.
The best advice to avoid skin cancer:  limit exposure to the sun, especially during the peak hours of 10 am- 4 pm. Wear a sunscreen of SPF 30 or higher and be sure to cover the often forgotten lips and ears. Hats help protect the scalp, and sunglasses keep sensitive eyes from damaging exposure.
The America Cancer Society recommends checking your skin once a month. If you have concerns, see your primary care physician or dermatologist. For more on self skin exams, visit the American Cancer Society’s website.

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Itchy nose, watery eyes and scratchy throat: as the cottonwood falls from the trees and the flowers are in full bloom, do you find yourself suffering from seasonal allergies lately?Although allergens are present year round, allergy sufferers find the spring, summer and fall months especially troublesome. Allergies that occur specifically with the seasons are called seasonal allergies.

If you’re suffering sneezing, runny nose and congestion right now, it may not be a summer cold; you could have seasonal allergies. According to Dr. Bass, approximately 35 percent of the US population has some form of allergic rhinitis. Susceptibility to allergies is genetic and usually runs in families.

Though no cure, physicians can help those who suffer from allergies manage their symptoms. Once you identify the trigger avoid contact with the triggers.

Dr. Bass says that some medications, including antihistamines, can help. “The first is the antihistamines. Second line would be to use nasal medications, and there are several kinds. There is the pure steroid, and then there is the pure antihistamine. Then there is a combination on the market that is a combination of a steroid and an antihistamine that you can use in the nose.”

For individuals whose allergies are not improved by basic treatment options, Dr. Bass says shots are available. Anyone suffering from allergies should see their primary care physician, who may refer them to an allergist for further evaluation and possible treatment.
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More than 200 people attended the sixth annual Butterfly Release on June 14 in the Thomas Garden of Hope at the Simmons Cancer Institute at SIU School of Medicine (SCI). More than 300 names were read, celebrating and remembering those with cancer. Proceeds benefit cancer research at SCI.

The average adult needs two-and-a-half hours of physical activity a week, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The simplest form of exercise might just be walking. Take advantage of the central Illinois optimum weather conditions to boost your health.

Click the image above for more information on the benefits of walking from the CDC.

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Metastatic prostate cancer is the second deadliest cancer among US men, behind lung cancer.

It’s an unfortunate irony: the small gland that allows a man to create life can sometimes lead to his own demise. Once a man has passed his reproductive prime, the prostate has the potential to become a different kind of loaded weapon. To the SIU School of Medicine urology team, the goal is to catch prostate problems early, and a new method of diagnosing this disease is now being offered to patients.

St. John’s Hospital’s Dr. Zata and SIU’s Dr. Alanee

MRI’s might be better than the current standard – ultrasound – which can‘t tell whether a lesion on the organ is cancerous as it randomly samples a portion of the prostate. SIU’s urology team is now using an MRI on the prostate. An MRI can provide very clear soft-tissue details of the prostate, revealing lesions that the physicians can accurately target for a biopsy.

St. John’s Hospital is partnering with SIU School of Medicine to provide this specialized imaging in Springfield. Dr. Shaheen Alanee is head of urologic cancer care at SIU. He is using the MRI protocols designed by a team of physician collaborators at Centre Hospitalier Regionale University in Lille, France and Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York. St. John’s radiologists Dr. Vincent Zata and Dr. Theodore Gleason measure the lesion and grade its likelihood of being cancerous with a much higher degree of certainty than can be done using other techniques. Dr. Alanee then uses the MRI images to target suspicious areas for the biopsy needle.

The benefits

This new, more accurate, less invasive technology gives men with rising PSAs and previous negative biopsies better information to address their concerns.

“There is increasing evidence that using an MRI before a biopsy can accurately identify patients who require immediate biopsies and those who could be deferred,” Dr. Alanee says. “Our findings are already detecting cancer in areas a biopsy did not.”

“The potential of MRI in prostate cancer detection and management seems unlimited,” Dr. Zata says. “As the technology develops, more uses for MRI are being identified. Someday soon we may be able to substitute prostate biopsy with a combination of blood tests and MRI imaging and save our patients the discomfort of an invasive procedure.”

Read more about how SIU School of Medicine is treating men with prostate cancer in our most recent edition of aspects.

Men’s Health Week is June 9-15. Read more about men’s health topics in our previous blogs:

Men’s Health: no laughing matter

Help for men who “gotta go” too often

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June is National Safety Month. Injury is the #1 killer of children in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Many of these deaths could have been prevented. Click on the infographic from the CDC below to learn more.

With warm weather comes a host of exciting outdoor activities: swimming, boating, biking, road trips, fireworks and camping to name a few. But, when precautions aren’t taken, many of these activities can also end in injury. Traumatic brain injuries (TBI) contribute to a substantial number of deaths and cases of permanent disability in the United States. 2.5 million TBIs occurred either as an isolated injury or along with other injuries in 2012, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

One group at SIU School of Medicine makes it its mission to prevent injuries.

ThinkFirst is an injury prevention program offered by SIU’s Division of Orthopaedics. ThinkFirst at SIU is a chapter of the national ThinkFirst Program sponsored by the American College of Neurosurgeons and the Congress of Neurological Surgeons throughout the country. The group offers injury prevention programs as a public service, at no cost.

Some of their programs include:

• ThinkFirst for Teens brings ThinkFirst health professionals and an injured speaker to present to high school students on basic brain and spine anatomy and brain and spinal cord injury prevention.
• ThinkFirst for Youths/Kids presentations are interactive activities focused on brain and spinal cord injury specifically addressing bike helmets, seat belt usage and basic safety for elementary and middle school students.
• At Victim Impact Panels, an injured speaker presents information to court-ordered DUI offenders.
• In the Crash Re-Enactments, ThinkFirst staff assist high schools in constructing simulated crash scenes to demonstrate the leading cause of injury and death for teens.
• At community health fairs, ThinkFirst staff present information on brain and spinal cord injuries and prevention strategies.
• To prevent pediatric acquired brain injuries, ThinkFirst works with local schools to educate and fit students with bicycle helmets.

The following agencies have joined forces to achieve our goal of safer communities: Think First Foundation (National Head and Spinal Cord Injury Prevention Program), Illinois Department of Transportation – Traffic Safety Division, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Illinois Safe Kids and the Illinois State Police.

ThinkFirst at SIU School of Medicine has been serving central and southern Illinois for 25 years, presenting to audiences of all ages about brain and spinal cord injury prevention. ThinkFirst has made more than 5,500 presentations in its history, reaching more than 400,000 people.  Since 2003, ThinkFirst has brought in $3.8 million in grants for SIU School of Medicine and has been a self-sustaining outreach program to the community.

Visit SIU’s ThinkFirst website for more information.

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