A new study has found that non-melanoma skin cancers (NMSC), typically thought to be less serious, are causing more deaths across the globe than melanoma, according to a report in The Independent.
They also believe NMSC is underreported and that the true impact of the disease may be higher than previously thought.
Skin cancer is one of the most common types of the disease globally. There are two types: NMSC refers to the more common group that slowly develops in the upper layers of the skin. Melanoma, meanwhile, is a type of skin cancer that can spread to other areas of the body.
The main cause of both is exposure to ultraviolet rays, which come from the sun and are used in tanning beds. Professor Thierry Passeron, lead author of the study and dermatologist at Nice University Hospital, said that the “strikingly higher” prevalence of NMSC had pushed deaths up.
A new mole or a change in an existing mole may be signs of melanoma, while NMSC usually appears as a lump or discoloured patch on the skin that persists after a few weeks and slowly progresses over months or sometimes years.
“In 2020, NMSC accounted for 78% of all skin cancer cases, resulting in over 63 700 deaths,” he said. “In contrast, melanoma caused an estimated 57 000 fatalities in the same year. The significantly higher incidence of NMSC has, therefore, led to a more substantial overall impact.”
He added: “As alarming as these figures are, they may, in fact, be underestimated. NMSC is often underreported in cancer registries, making it challenging to understand the true burden.”
For their study, researchers looked at data from the World Health Organisation International Agency for Research on Cancer.
In 2020, there were nearly 1.2m reported cases of NMSC worldwide compared with 324 635 cases of melanoma. “We have to get the message out that not only melanoma can be fatal, but NMSC also,” Passeron said.
“It’s crucial to note that individuals with melanin rich skin are also at risk and are dying from skin cancer. There is a need to implement effective strategies to reduce the fatalities associated with all kinds of skin cancers.”
The involvement of other healthcare practitioners, such as GPs, in the identification and management of this disease may partly explain their success, it added.
There remains a huge opportunity worldwide to elevate the role of GPs and other healthcare professionals in this process and train them to recognise suspicious lesions early, the study said.
The Independent – Melanoma ‘no longer the leading cause of skin cancer deaths’