Patients with melanoma may benefit from having their partners help to examine their skin for new skin cancers, and this does not cause embarrassment or discomfort for the patient or partner, finds a new study in JAMA Dermatology.

JAMA Dermatology Editor June K. Robinson, MD, of the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago,  and coauthors assessed levels of embarrassment, comfort and self-confidence reported by patients and partners in performing skin self-exams as part of a skin self-exam education training program. Patients and their partners (n=395) completed surveys at four-month intervals.

There was no change in the level of embarrassment or comfort in performing skin self-exams during the two-year study based on responses from patients and partners. However, there was an increase in self-confidence in performing skin self-exams for both patients and partners, the study showed.

“Dyads [pairs] who received an educational intervention on performing SSEs [skin self-exams] increased their levels of self-confidence in performing SSEs without increasing levels of embarrassment or decreasing levels of comfort. This finding provides substantive evidence that asking dyads to regularly perform SSEs does not increase emotional barriers (i.e. feelings of discomfort or embarrassment),” the article concludes.