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A Viking’s Challenge 2023 Recap

A Viking’s Challenge 4th Edition was March 4 & 5 and we couldn’t be happier with how the event unfolded.

In total, 36 people participated, running a combined total of 737 km, or the equivalent of 24.5 crossings of Lake Winnipeg. For the first time since the pandemic, Chris was able to be back on the lake with his friend Shawn in Gimli, MB this year, despite the ongoing treatments and side-effects that come with fighting a dangerous cancer.

We thank everyone who contributed to A Viking’s Challenge 2023. Your actions have made a powerful statement of support for Chris and fellow melanoma patients across CanadaTogether, we raised nearly $9,000 this year. Since its inception in 2020, the event has raised $50,000 to help assist patients reach the life- treatment they need.


The Weekend in Pictures

From top left: Chris Isfeld, Shawn Bjornsson and friends, Lisa Boldt, Rosemary Westie and friends, Joan Denroche, Rosemary Westie and family, Chris Isfeld, Shawn Bjornsson and friends, Jessica Drakul.

Thank You to our Sponsors!

Many thanks to the businesses who generously sponsored “A Viking’s Challenge” this year:

  • Bristol Myers Squibb
  • Ship and Plough Tavern
  • Pfizer
  • Merck Canada
  • Sanofi

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Skin of Colour: Skin Cancer Image Sources

There is a distinct lack of racial diversity in medical images of skin conditions.

To address this gap, we have been working with a medical student to help collate resources that depict skin cancer, and other skin conditions, in people of colour.

We are very pleased to finally have the resource complete and ready to share with you. Click the button or click on the image below to expand.

Prepared By: Rebecca Lena MD (C)

University of Toronto Faculty of Medicine

Version: 01/03/23

The following citation is recommended: Lena, Rebecca. Skin of Colour Skin Cancer Image Sources. Save Your Skin Foundation. January 2023, https://saveyourskin.ca/wp-content/uploads/Skin-of-Color-Skin-Cancer-Image-Sources.pdf. [Day Month Year of access].

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November is Ocular Melanoma Awareness Month

November is Ocular Melanoma Awareness month – and it is the time of year we at Save Your Skin Foundation and Ocumel Canada bring extra public awareness to the importance of dilated eye exams for the detection of ocular melanoma.

Through our work, we will continue the conversation and maintain the #EyeGetDilated campaign beyond November, so that all Canadians can learn about their options for head to toe body health and to include eye checks in their list of doctor exams.

Early detection is incredibly important for many eye diseases, including ocular melanoma. Ocular melanoma is rare, affecting approximately five in a million people. About 200 cases are diagnosed per year in Canada. While it represents only 5% of melanomas, ocular melanoma can be rapid and aggressive, accounting for 9% of melanoma deaths. Also referred to as uveal melanoma, ocular is a more inclusive term; 90% of primary ocular melanoma develops in the choroid.

To read more about the importance of annual dilated eye exams, click on Brianne’s story below:

We are proud to have partnered with the groups BC Doctors of Optometry and Alberta Association of Optometrists!

 

 

 

 

 

 

For more information about Ocumel Canada and the work we do, visit any of the following pages:

OcumelCanada.ca

About Ocular Melanoma

Helpful Links

Resources and Support

If you or someone you know has been diagnosed with primary or metastatic ocular melanoma, connect with our community of support, Canadian bilingual Facebook group:  Ocular Melanoma Connect/Connexion mélanome oculaire 

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Save Your Skin is a Verified Voice on Healthing.ca

 

Verified Voice

Save Your Skin Foundation is very pleased to announce we are now a Verified Voice on Healthing.ca, providing a wide variety of informational articles including prevention, treatment options, melanoma staging, patient stories and more.

Please visit our profile HERE.

 

Healthing.ca

Healthing.ca is a destination for information on symptoms, diseases and treatments as well as insights on the latest health trends, research and the people who are disrupting health care as we know it.

 

 

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Skin Cancer in People of Colour

During Black History Month we want to bring awareness to how skin cancer and melanoma affect the Black community and people of colour.

Skin cancer is less common in people of colour, but when it does occur, it’s often diagnosed at an advanced stage and has a worse prognosis. This can be deadly when the person has melanoma. Treatment for any type of skin cancer can be difficult in the late stages.

About 52% of Black people and 26% of Hispanics find out they have melanoma when it has already spread, compared with 16% of White people.

One study, found an average five-year melanoma survival rate of only 67% in Black people versus 92% in White people.

According to experts, there’s a lower public awareness overall of the risk of skin cancer among people of colour.

Also, from the perspective of health-care providers, there’s often a lower index of suspicion for skin cancer in patients of colour, because the chances of it actually are smaller. So these patients may be less likely to get regular, full-body skin exams.

 

The warning signs of skin cancer are different in people of colour

 

In people of colour, skin cancer often develops on parts of the body that get less sun like the soles of the feet, lower legs, and palms, which makes detection more difficult. Up to 60 – 75% of melanoma in people of colour occurs on the palms of the hands, soles of the feet and the nail areas. This cancer may also begin around the anus, or on the genitals.

The risk factors for acral melanomas are not fully understood — acral meaning on the hands and feet — but sun is less likely to be a factor. In melanomas on the whole, UV radiation is certainly a major risk factor, and there are plenty of UV-induced melanomas and squamous cell carcinomas in people of colour, who can have a wide range of complexions, from very fair to very dark. But the proportion of skin cancers that occur in non-sun-exposed sites is greater in darker-skinned populations.

About 50% of basal cell carcinomas (BCCs) are pigmented (meaning brown in color) in darker-skinned patients. If you look at the typical photos of BCCs used in educational materials — most of which focus on fair skin — you’ll see a pink, pearly growth that may or may not be crusted. What you’ll almost never see is an image of a brown, slightly translucent lesion. Yet about half of BCCs in darker-skinned patients are brown, or pigmented, and thus easier to miss.

Check out THIS GUIDE for examples of skin cancer on skin of colour.

 

SOURCES:

 

The Skin Cancer Foundation, https://www.skincancer.org/

American Academy of Dermatology Association, https://www.aad.org/

WebMD, https://www.webmd.com/

Gloster HM, Neal K. Skin cancer in skin of color. J Am Acad Dermatol 2006; 55:741-60. https://www.jaad.org/article/S0190-9622(05)02730-1/fulltext

 

 

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Young Winnipeg girl makes buttons for a good cause

A young Winnipeg girl named Drea has been busy during the pandemic making buttons for face masks. The ingenious buttons attach to your glasses to take the pressure off your ears.

With the help of her grandmother Suzanne, Drea launched ‘Designs by Drea’ and began making and selling the buttons in the summer of 2020.  It was always their intention to donate a portion from each sale to Save Your Skin Foundation.

Drea’s uncle Wes has stage 2 high risk melanoma and just finished a year of Immunotherapy treatment.

Last month Drea donated half of her profits to Save Your Skin Foundation, donating the other half to another Canadian skin cancer charity to support efforts to find a cure for melanoma.

You can still purchase buttons at $3.00 for one pair or $5.00 for 2 pair. To order email triathlonski@gmail.com

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Global Coalition launches Skin Check App and Video

In response to the Covid pandemic, the Global Coalition for Melanoma Patient Advocacy has launched two skin self-exam tools to encourage individuals to perform skin self-examinations.

In the fight against melanoma skin cancer, early detection and treatment is critical.

Both the voice-activated app and the video are free to use, so we encourage everybody to find just 10 minutes each month and make conducting a skin self-exam part of their regular routine.

 

1. A voice-activated digital assistant ‘Skin Check’ app

 

Available on both Amazon’s Alexa and the Google Assistant platforms, the app guides people through what to look for, and the seven steps for conducting a full-body skin exam.

The assistant finishes by offering to set a recurring monthly reminder for the exam.

Once enabled, users can simply ask Alexa or Google: “Open Skin Check”

 

 

 

2. A skin self-exam video

 

Similar in scope to the app, the video covers the ABCDE warning signs of melanoma, and the seven steps for checking the body.

Pauses between the seven steps have been included in the film, so that the viewer can simply take their phone or tablet into a bathroom, hit play, and follow the instructions in real time.

 

 

About The Global Coalition for Melanoma Patient Advocacy

 

The Global Coalition for Melanoma Patient Advocacy was formed in 2014 by the Melanoma Research Foundation in response to the global need to bring the patient voice to the melanoma space.

The group has grown to include organizations from 27 different countries and is enthusiastically supported by its partners around the world, as well as the global patient, healthcare and pharmaceutical communities. The Coalition meets the vital needs of the worldwide melanoma community through three working groups, which each specialize in a unique area that addresses globally relevant issues for melanoma patients, encompassing:

  • Melanoma Awareness and Patient Resources
  • Patient Advocacy and Access to Treatment
  • Collaboration and Recruitment

 

The Global Coalition for Melanoma Patient Advocacy meets annually and is determined to make the deadliest skin cancer curable through its worldwide partnership. For more information or with questions about the Global Coalition, email global@melanoma.org.

 

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Sun Safe BC

BC Sun Safety Coalition

Sun Safe BC is a provincial coalition with members involved in sun safety and skin cancer prevention work.  Coordinated and administered by BC Cancer Prevention Program, the coalition works collaboratively to reduce the risk of exposure to UV and its damaging effects. We do this through policy and health protection measures, and by providing health promotion messaging and education to people in BC, with a particular focus on infants, children and youth.

Membership

  • Save Your Skin Foundation
  • Canadian Cancer Society
  • CAREX Canada
  • Vancouver Coastal Health
  • BC Centre for Disease Control
  • UBC Dermatology
  • BC Children’s Hospital
  • BC Cancer
  • Canadian Dermatology Association

 

Action Areas

CAPACITY FOR ACTION – Strengthen capacity among priority population service providers and educators

SUPPORTIVE ENVIRONMENTS – Create and strengthen supportive environments to limit exposure to UV radiation

POLICY & DECISION MAKING – Inform decision making and seek to influence sun safe policies, advancing toward provincial policy creation or amendments when and where possible;

ATTITUDE, KNOWLEDGE & BEHAVIOUR – Influence and improve attitudes, knowledge and behaviour around sun safety and develop individual skills to keep healthy and avoid UV radiation damage.

 

Current and past projects

Online Training for Early Childhood Educators

Developed and currently hosting zoom workshops for early childhood educators as part of their professional development requirements.  Early Childhood Educators can play an important role in protecting children from the sun’s rays. The course covers important information about skin cancer and ultraviolet radiation, sun protection methods and easy and practical ways to build sun safety into daily routines at childcare centres.  We are working to convert the course to an interactive, online platform and are looking to expand course offering to others working directly with children.

Shade Pilot Project

We are working with the City of Vancouver to design and install shade solutions for their high UV exposure childcare facilities.  We are currently building a research plan to measure UV exposure and physical activity levels in centres with and without shade sails installed.

Sunscreen Dispenser Project

Members of the coalition have been working to have sunscreen dispensers installed at select park locations during spring/summer months.  To date, sunscreen dispensers have been installed at New Westminster’s Riverfront Park and two park locations in Kelowna.

 

Reports

Annual report 2019/20

Contact

For more information or to connect, visit the website HERE or email breann.corcoran at bccancer.bc.ca or call 604-838-7808.

 

 

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Letter to Santa 2020

Our annual holiday letter to Santa

Every year, one of the last to-do items we check off our list is sending our annual holiday letter to Santa.
This year certainly looked a lot different than years past, but our wish list hasn’t changed much.

Read the letter to see what we asked Santa for!

 

 

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Move for Melanoma 2020 – It’s a Wrap!

 

To everyone who participated in Move for Melanoma 2020 by raising awareness and funds in their communities, a huge thank you! We couldn’t have done it without you!


Over 100 participants
and 24 teams across Canada took part in Move for Melanoma this year! We have been so moved and inspired by this incredible community of patients, families, and friends.

We’d like to thank all those who supported Move for Melanoma by making a donation, sponsoring an event or spreading the word. Thanks to you, the event was a monumental success!
We reached 120% of our (doubled) fundraising goal! You can read our full post-event press release HERE.

To all participants and donors, your dedication to the fight against skin cancer will help Save Your Skin Foundation continue to support Canadians living with non-melanoma skin cancer, melanoma and ocular melanoma when they need it most. Every single dollar raised through your donations will go directly to patients in the form of cab fares, treatment costs, flights, accommodation and other necessary but costly expenses incurred while receiving treatment.

Thanks to all our participants who sent us pictures of themselves and their teammates taking part in Move for Melanoma, we were able to create a beautiful Wrap video of the event. We encourage you to take 2 minutes to complete our post-event PARTICIPANT SURVEY to help us improve for next year!

 

Watch our 2020 Wrap video!

 

 

Thank you to our Sponsors:

 

We’d like to acknowledge the many businesses that have stepped up to support our event this year. They have generously donated prizes for our top fundraisers and made monetary contributions to the event.
Please show them your support!

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