The underexplored links between cancer and the internal body climate: Implications for cancer prevention and treatment
How To Check If You Have Skin Cancer: Symptoms And Signs To Look Out For
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Your support makes all the difference. Read moreIt is the most common form of cancer in Britain and kills around 2,100 people in the UK each year, but still, a "shocking" number of people remain unaware of the dangers of skin cancer, its links to sunburn, and how to spot the signs of this deadly disease.
An overwhelming 77 per cent of people would not recognise signs of melanoma – a malignant skin cancer tumour – despite the majority of Britons worrying about skin cancer, according to the British Association of Dermatologists (BAD).
It comes as Cancer Research UK has warned that skin cancer cases are set to rise by half by 2040, with rocketing diagnoses driven by the "cheap package holiday" boom of the 1960s.
Skin cancer diagnoses hit record levels of 17,545 a year between 2017-19 and based on the charity's predictions, that figure is set to rise to 26,531 each year by 2040.
There are two types of skin cancer; melanoma, the deadliest form of which around 13,000 new cases are diagnosed each year in the UK, and non-melanoma, of which there are more than 100,000 new cases diagnosed every year.
The risk of melanoma is doubled if a person has had five or more sunburns at any age, the Skin Care Foundation states, but adds that experiencing just one blistering sunburn in childhood or adolescence more than doubles a person's chances of developing a melanoma later in life.
Non-melanoma comes in two most common forms: basal cell carcinoma, which accounts for about 75 per cent of skin cancers, and squamous cell carcinoma, which accounts for about 20 per cent. It is mainly caused by overexposure to UV light.
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A boom in cheap holidays is said to have contributed to a predicted rise in skin cancer cases (PA)But despite the serious risks of cancer posed from sunburn, nearly three-quarters of people surveyed by BAD admitted to having been burned in the past year alone, while 40 per cent of people were found to never check themselves for signs of cancer.
Here is how to check for possible signs of melanoma and non-melanoma skin cancer:
Melanoma:
Non-melanoma:
Beating The Clock: Melanoma Starts Evading Treatment Within Hours -- Here's How To Stop It
Researchers have uncovered a stealth survival strategy that melanoma cells use to evade targeted therapy, offering a promising new approach to improving treatment outcomes.
The study, published in Cell Systems and conducted by researchers at the Institute for Systems Biology (ISB) and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) identifies a non-genetic, reversible adaptation mechanism that allows melanoma cells to survive treatment with BRAF inhibitors. By identifying and blocking this early response, researchers proposed a combination therapy that could delay resistance and enhance the effectiveness of existing treatments.
Cracking the Code of Melanoma's Drug Escape
Melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer, is often driven by mutations in the BRAF gene, which fuels uncontrolled tumor growth. While BRAF inhibitors (such as vemurafenib) initially halt tumor growth, many tumors quickly adapt and survive treatment, leading to therapy failure.
Unlike traditional resistance driven by genetic mutations, this study uncovers an early, dynamic adaptation process that occurs within hours to days of drug treatment -- long before genetic resistance takes hold. Surprisingly, this process does not rely on reactivating the BRAF-ERK pathway, which is the usual resistance mechanism.
Using cutting-edge mass spectrometry-based phosphoproteomics and deep transcriptomics analyses, researchers mapped the molecular shifts in melanoma cells over minutes, hours, and days of BRAF inhibitor treatment.
"We found that while the BRAF-ERK signaling pathway was quickly and durably suppressed, cancer cells did not rely on reactivating ERK to survive. Instead, they triggered an alternative SRC family kinase (SFK) signaling pathway, which promoted cell survival and eventual recovery," said Chunmei Liu, PhD, a bioinformatics scientist at ISB and co-first author of the paper.
Turning a Weakness Into a Target
A key discovery in this study came when researchers linked SFK activation to reactive oxygen species (ROS), a cellular stress response that builds up under BRAF inhibition. As ROS levels surged, SFK activity spiked, helping melanoma cells withstand treatment. However, this adaptation was reversible -- when treatment was removed, cells returned to their original state.
Recognizing this Achilles' heel, the team tested a combination approach: pairing BRAF inhibitors with the SFK inhibitor dasatinib.
"By adding dasatinib, we blocked this adaptive escape mechanism, significantly reducing melanoma cell survival and stabilizing tumors in animal models," said ISB Associate Professor Wei Wei, PhD, co-corresponding author.
Importantly, SFK inhibition alone had little effect on melanoma cells, highlighting the need for a strategic combination therapy to suppress melanoma adaptation before resistance fully develops.
"This approach has the potential to prolong the effectiveness of BRAF inhibitors and improve patient outcomes," said ISB President and Professor Jim Heath, PhD, another co-corresponding author.
Looking Ahead: A Path to the Clinic
Beyond uncovering a key mechanism of drug adaptation, this research underscores the importance of early intervention to prevent it from happening. It also highlights ROS accumulation and SFK activation as potential biomarkers for identifying patients who may benefit from this combination therapy.
Further preclinical studies and clinical trials will be necessary to validate this combination therapy strategy and determine its potential for broader clinical use.
This study was funded by the National Institutes of Health and the Andy Hill CARE Fund.
Comic Ryan Diagnosed With Skin Cancer For Second Time
Paul GlynnCulture reporter
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Katherine Ryan said her doctor told her the melanoma had been caught "very early"
Comedian Katherine Ryan has said she has been diagnosed with skin cancer for a second time.
Speaking on her podcast and social media, the Canadian star confirmed she had recently had a cancerous mole on her arm removed, and will have a further procedure next week to ensure it is all gone.
The stand-up comic, 41, was first diagnosed with cancer in 2004 when she was a student in Toronto, having a "golf ball-sized" lump taken out of her thigh as a result.
This time around, she said a doctor had initially dismissed her concerns, but tests showed that the mole was "early melanoma".
'Mole wasn't right'
"If you know about melanoma, you'll know it is a deadly form of skin cancer. It does spread quickly, and I just felt like this mole wasn't right," she said.
However, a doctor assured her the mole was not melanoma, she told listeners of her Telling Everybody Everything podcast.
"It's really easy to take a diagnosis of 'you're healthy' and just walk away... But the mole kept changing."
She went back to the doctor, who still said it was "totally fine", but removed part of it for testing.
The doctor then called her back and confirmed her suspicions were correct - it was melanoma.
She said he told her it had been caught "very early, so I highly doubt that it has spread".
She added: "It just feels crazy to me, what could have happened, if I hadn't been my own advocate - and I will continue to be my own advocate."
Ryan is a regular on UK TV programmes like Live at the Apollo, 8 Out of 10 Cats and her own Netflix show, The Duchess.
She said "the whole reason that I was reminded to go back" to the doctor's was because she had seen Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Teddi Mellencamp talking about her own melonoma.
"God bless that woman for being so transparent about her journey," she said.
Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Teddi Mellencamp inspired Ryan to get herself checked
Ryan said she has "very fair Celtic skin" so wears sun cream "all the time" and also covers up her body - which has "over 100 moles" - when she goes out in it.
Her latest bout of cancer has left her wondering "what other moles do I need to have checked?"
She also urged listeners to find the time to get themselves checked and to "advocate" for themselves with their health concerns.
"You have to make space in your day for these appointments," she said.
Last year, Cancer Research UK warned people to do more to protect themselves from the sun as the number of melanoma skin cancer cases in the UK continues to rise.
The charity predicted there would be a record 20,800 cases diagnosed in 2024 – up from a yearly average of 19,300 between 2020 and 2022.
The rise in diagnoses is due partly to a growing ageing population and an increase in awareness of the signs of skin cancer.
What is melanoma?
Melanoma, also known as malignant melanoma, is a type of skin cancer that can spread to other organs in the body.
Melanomas are less common than non-melanoma skin cancers, but they are one of the most dangerous forms of skin cancer, according to the British Skin Foundation.
They can develop from existing moles, but they more often appear as new marks on the skin, the charity says.
This can appear anywhere on the body, but the most commonly affected areas are the back in men and the legs in women.
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