MEDICAL authorities say 800 Marylanders will be diagnosed this year with melanoma, a deadly form of skin cancer associated with prolonged exposure to the sun.
Maryland's health secretary, Georges C. Benjamin, says melanoma is the fastest growing cancer in our state. Similar trends have been spotted nationally.
In the nation, melanoma afflicts 45,000 persons each year. The figure is rising. Some 9,200 will die from it.
This is the disease that has recurred in U.S. Sen. John McCain, the Navy POW hero and Republican candidate for president from Arizona.
Several immediate lessons should be learned anew: While doctors have had considerable success with melanomas caught early, prevention is surely the best cure.
Limit exposure to the sun and use sun-block lotions.
A further warning is needed: Researchers believe some sunbathers get a sense of invulnerability when they use sunscreen and stay exposed longer that they should. No protection is perfect. And none is as good as staying out of the harmful rays.
It's August, the height of the sun-and-fun season, so parents ought to apply the unguents even before they pick up the sand toys. And don't forget the umbrella. Rent one if you don't take one.
Beware of the language: "sunbathing," "baking" and "bronzing" and even "tanning."
Those who, like the senator from Arizona, have had a melanoma before know they must be vigilant in spotting recurrences. "Cures" may be possible, but they aren't guaranteed. Early detection is critical.
John McCain can be important in the nation's education about skin cancer. But, unhappily, too many of us still pay little heed to the rising number of melanoma cases, until we -- or someone we know -- becomes the patient.
