Medical Students Not Concerned About Skin Cancers

Medical students understand the causes of skin cancer but may be confused about SPF and sunscreen use, comments in recent focus groups suggest. (Arch Dermatol. 148(3):392-393) Surprisingly, most medical students participating in a focus group reported that they used a tanning bed or tanned in the sun to improve their appearance. Twenty medical students from the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio participated in four focus groups with the aim of understanding their perceptions of skin cancer. The students discussed what they understood about skin cancer, how to avoid it, the extent to which they engaged in sun-protective behaviors, risk perceptions, adherence to warnings, and the effectiveness of various channels used to communicate information about skin cancer. According to study authors, responses indicate that the students showed disregard for skin cancer warnings, with the most common reason being that skin cancer “is not as scary as other cancers,” such as breast and lung cancer, which were described as widely publicized. The students did recommend media campaigns with celebrity spokespersons to tell real-life stories about skin cancer and graphic depictions of skin cancer to increase awareness.