April 29, 2009

CONTACT:
Communications Department
(320) 251-2700, ext. 74980

Free cancer screening scheduled

ST. CLOUD, Minn. — A limited number of free skin cancer screenings will be offered Monday, May 4, with Barry LaBine, M.D., Daniel Mischke, M.D., and Christina Anderson, M.D., and Tuesday, May 5, with Rachel Schuneman, M.D., at CentraCare Clinic – Health Plaza, 1900 CentraCare Circle. Interested participants must call (320) 229-4924 between 7:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. weekdays for an appointment time. No walk-ins will be accepted.

This 12th annual CentraCare Clinic screening coincides with National Melanoma/Skin Cancer Detection and Prevention Month, sponsored by the American Academy of Dermatology and CentraCare Clinic. May is Skin Cancer Detection and Prevention Month.

The screenings are part of a national campaign to encourage early detection and teach prevention of skin cancer, the most common form of cancer in this country. Approximately
one million new cases of skin cancer will be diagnosed in the United States this year.

The Academy’s national detection and prevention program is in its 24th year and is being launched this year on May 4, which has been designated “Melanoma Monday,” to raise awareness of malignant melanoma and urge Americans to regularly examine their skin for signs of serious forms of skin cancer.

Skin self-examinations consist of periodically looking over your body for any changes in the size, color, shape or texture of a mole, the development of a new mole or any other unusual changes in the skin. Any of these signs should be reported to a dermatologist right away.

“With melanoma, early detection can be simple because the changes are detectable on the skin which patients can easily monitor,” said Barry LaBine, M.D., dermatologist with CentraCare Clinic. “If there are changes these need to be seen by a physician."

Since the 1930s, the incidence of melanoma has increased more than 2,000 percent. One person dies of melanoma every hour.

Learn more about CentraCare Clinic Dermatology

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