“SKIN OF COLOR?” Patients With Skin of Color Less Likely to Survive Skin Cancer.

A new study published online in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology states that while Caucasians have a higher risk of skin cancer compared to the general population — and have the highest incidence of melanoma — people with skin of color are less likely to survive the disease.

Researchers analyzed the data of approximately 97,000 patients who were diagnosed with melanoma over a 17-year period (between 1992 and 2009). And even though Caucasians had the largest number of cases of the disease, they had the best overall survival rate, followed by Hispanic patients and patients in the Asian-American/Native American/Pacific Islander group.

The patients with the worst rate of survival: African-Americans. They were also the group most likely to be diagnosed when the disease reached its later stages.

One of the investigators explains that time may play a part in this alarming news, since patients with skin of color often do not seek immediate medical attention after spotting a suspicious marking. And while it’s still unclear, he adds that there might be biological differences in melanoma among these people, which results in a more aggressive form of the disease.

Hmm. Despite the name, I don’t think that more melanin has anything to do with more-aggressive melanoma, but who knows? But obviously there’s less contrast between a dark mole and dark skin and a dark mole and light skin. Plus, I think a lot of black people may assume that they’re immune to skin cancer. But less likely to get it isn’t the same as immune.