A friend of mine has a father who had skin cancer, a malignant mole called melanoma. Now her parents don’t allow her to go out in the sun anymore, because her parents are afraid that she will also get skin cancer. I don’t understand this much, does a mole suddenly become malignant by the sun? And is a melanoma even hereditary?
Answer
Best,
Melanoma is largely caused by overexposure to the sun (UV rays). This is of course not hereditary. It is true that certain skin types (and that is hereditary) are more susceptible to developing a melanoma. For example, the chance of a melanoma is about 10 times smaller in someone with dark skin, such as in the black skin type, than in someone with white skin.
In about 8 to 12% of cases there is a family history of melanoma. These are therefore not all hereditary. A number of genetic factors have been discovered that determine the development of a melanoma (CDKN2A tumor suppressor gene, CDK4, xeroderma pigmentosum, BRCA2 gene mutations), but this only occurs in a minority of melanomas.
The chance of a melanoma is still increasing (the chance of ever getting a melanoma about 2%). A melanoma can arise from a mole, but moles are more an indication of an increased risk of melanoma.
An annual check-up at the dermatologist for someone who has several moles is therefore definitely recommended.
Kind regards,
Answered by
Dr Jasper Verguts
Gynecology-Obstetrics
Old Market 13 3000 Leuven
https://www.kuleuven.be/
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