Mac Jones, M.D., practices with Patrick Teer, M.D., at the Dermatology Clinic of Jackson, 27 Medical Specialty Drive. Both are board-certified dermatologists specializing in skin conditions.

To schedule an appointment, call the clinic at 731-422-7999 or visit www.dermjax.com





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Dr. Mac Jones sees skin cancer daily in his clinic.

Skin cancer on rise, but treatable if caught early

For 25 years, Dermatologist Mac Jones, M.D., has been treating skin cancer — and he has watched the prevalence of skin cancer rise, especially in younger patients.

"There is not a day that goes by that I do not see a patient with skin cancer and in all different stages," said Dr. Jones, a board-certified dermatologist with the Dermatology Clinic of Jackson. "Although the majority of patients are in their 30s and older, one recent summer we had two teenagers with melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer."

The most common skin cancers are basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma. About 98 percent of all skin cancers can be surgically removed in the office, said Dr. Jones. "With a one centimeter margin around what you see clinically, you have better than a 90 percent chance of not needing more specialized surgery."

When medically appropriate, Jones refers advanced cases to a specialist, such as a plastic surgeon or an oncology surgeon. Mohs surgery, a microscopic surgery that removes skin cancer with minimum damage to surrounding skin and a high cure rate, is needed in only a small percentage of skin cancer patients, he said.

The demon causing skin cancer is ultraviolet radiation that comes from the sun and artificial sources, such as tanning beds.

In fact, Dr. Jones attributes some of the increase in skin cancers, especially those among younger patients, to the use of tanning beds. And some people are believing the misguided message that increased levels of ultraviolet radiation will offer additional health benefits, such as getting one's daily dose of vitamin D.

"It's true that vitamin D is critical to healthy bones," said Dr. Jones. "But most people receive enough incidental sun exposure from their daily activities to meet their vitamin D requirements. Tanning bed salons and others that advocate intentional ultraviolet exposure as the preferred means of obtaining vitamin D are misleading the public."

For example, he explained, a person with fair skin requires only two to five minutes of mid-day exposure to get his or her daily dose of vitamin D. After this amount, any additional vitamin D your body produces will not be utilized.

If you are concerned about getting enough vitamin D, the safest way to obtain this is through a healthy, balanced diet that includes vitamin D-fortified foods, such as milk, or through oral vitamin D supplements, said Dr Jones. "If you have any concerns about your daily intake of vitamin D, have your regular physician draw your vitamin D level and then consider taking supplements, if necessary."

Sunlight or tanning beds are no better sources of vitamin D than food or supplements.

"The only thing for which they are better is increasing your risk for developing skin cancer and causing premature aging of your skin," said Dr. Jones. "Don't be mislead about the real dangers of sun and tanning-bed exposure."