Johanna Moore, MD, Pathology
Joshua J Marine said “challenges are what makes life interesting and overcoming them is what makes life meaningful.” You can live a fulfilling life, no matter what comes up next, because you have overcome challenges, be it cancer or not, you have the right frame of mind and you know how to figure out the best action plan.
If not identified at an early stage, melanoma has a high rate of morbidity and mortality. The mainstay of surgical intervention and the newest immunotherapeutic innovations in oncology are improving the fight. Nonetheless, the easiest way to live a life free malignant melanoma, is to never have it. The next best scenario is to catch it at its infancy. And each and every one of us has the power to make that happen.
Skin cancer mindfulness begins with knowing your risk factors and how to avoid them. The most important example of avoiding a risk factor is protection from ultraviolet (UV) light. The problem with sun prevention is, we live in San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara Counties and we love being outside!
For this reason and others, both counties are a hot spot for melanoma, even compared to the rest of California. According to the California Cancer Registry, the average rate of invasive melanoma in San Luis Obispo County is almost twice as high as the rest of the state, and in Santa Barbara County one and a half times as high.
The good news is my colleagues and I are here to help. Over the past ten years, I have reviewed and diagnosed more than 100,000 skin slides, helping your treating physician give you the truest course towards peace of mind. In the next ten years my vision involves launching a skin cancer mindfulness initiative that includes a plan of education, prevention and mindfulness that aims to decrease melanoma statistics in our community while still enjoying the amazing place we live in. Your job is to protect and watch over your own body. I am here to help you find the clarity and certainty to do it.
Questions about skin cancer screening?
Call Carol Lowe, RN, OCN , Oncology Nurse Navigator Santa Maria 805-346-3463 or Carol Dichmann, RN, BSN, Oncology Nurse Navigator Arroyo Grande 805-474-5302