dapperpoet Posted June 23, 2011 Share Posted June 23, 2011 (edited) My son is an adult, and as such he can make his own choices, but because he is fair-skinned and a towhead I wish he would wear a shirt. WHO came out last year and equated tanning and UV rays with exposure to radiation and lead paint in terms of danger (although their report was based on tanning beds, it applies). Many studies have shown a direct link between over-exposure to sun at an early age and later cancer, and melanoma is almost universally fatal. When I talked about this with the drum major and corps folks he marched with last year, they just kind of rolled their eyes, which I understand- they see this as the least of their problems. But what about a rule that would require wearing shirts in rehearsal? If just a few kids could be saved from having tumors cut off their skin or worse later on, it seems like it would be worthwhile to me...I know it's a ridiculous thing, but I worry nonetheless. Edited June 23, 2011 by dapperpoet 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeN Posted June 23, 2011 Share Posted June 23, 2011 I am putting on my flame-retardant suit for this one, but I agree - shirts s/b required. Skin cancer is not something that is taken as seriously as other health risks, and has definitely been subordinate in the past to drum corps tanlines. (I don't know how seriously corps take it these days.) Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlexL Posted June 23, 2011 Share Posted June 23, 2011 I'm gonna go ahead and disagree here. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrunchyTenor Posted June 23, 2011 Share Posted June 23, 2011 (edited) I understand your concerns, and everything you wrote makes sense. But, to tell you the truth, I don't know anyone I marched with or taught who ever had a case of melanoma. Maybe because of our weather in Califonia we were just used to slathering on the sun screen (and it wasn't as potent then as now) we may have has fewer instances. Does anyone else personally know a corps veteran who has had a case of skin cancer directly tied to exposure during their marching career? Garry in Vegas Sunscreen season Edited June 23, 2011 by CrunchyTenor Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
McEuph Posted June 23, 2011 Share Posted June 23, 2011 I understand your concerns, and everything you wrote makes sense. But, to tell you the truth, I don't know anyone I marched with or taught who ever had a case of melanoma. Maybe because of our weather in Califonia we were just used to slathering on the sun screen (and it wasn't as potent then as now) we may have has fewer instances. Does anyone else personally know a corps veteran who has had a case of skin cancer directly tied to exposure during their marching career? Garry in Vegas Sunscreen season I marched with a guy who was a rookie in 2009 who got skin cancer and came back to march in 2010. It was crazy. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Rohn Posted June 23, 2011 Share Posted June 23, 2011 This is a decision that should be left up to the corps. When I marched Glassmen, we had a shirt and hat rule for most of the season in 1995. When we got into a mid-season rut we were asked to put our issues into a box. The number one gripe? Shirts. The shirtless ban was removed and we cheered. It was a huge morale booster for us. I understand the concern about cancer, but its hot out there. Be smart and wear 50 SFP sunscreen. Wear a hat. That's about the best you can demand! Kids should be wearing earplugs in practice, too. But do they? I didn't. In hindsight I should have. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just A Plain Old Fan Posted June 23, 2011 Share Posted June 23, 2011 My son is an adult, and as such he can make his own choices, but because he is fair-skinned and a towhead I wish he would wear a shirt. WHO came out last year and equated tanning and UV rays with exposure to radiation and lead paint in terms of danger (although their report was based on tanning beds, it applies). Many studies have shown a direct link between over-exposure to sun at an early age and later cancer, and melanoma is almost universally fatal. When I talked about this with the drum major and corps folks he marched with last year, they just kind of rolled their eyes, which I understand- they see this as the least of their problems. But what about a rule that would require wearing shirts in rehearsal? If just a few kids could be saved from having tumors cut off their skin or worse later on, it seems like it would be worthwhile to me...I know it's a ridiculous thing, but I worry nonetheless. What do the drum major and corps folks he is marching with this year say? Do they require tee shirts at all times? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CuriousMe Posted June 23, 2011 Share Posted June 23, 2011 I understand your concerns, and everything you wrote makes sense. But, to tell you the truth, I don't know anyone I marched with or taught who ever had a case of melanoma. Maybe because of our weather in Califonia we were just used to slathering on the sun screen (and it wasn't as potent then as now) we may have has fewer instances. Does anyone else personally know a corps veteran who has had a case of skin cancer directly tied to exposure during their marching career? Garry in Vegas Sunscreen season The kind of cancer the OP is speaking of can't really be directly tied to exposure from decades ago in an individual. There is a correlation link between individuals who had excessive sun exposure when they were young and increased rates of skin cancer later on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shamu89 Posted June 23, 2011 Share Posted June 23, 2011 My son is an adult, and as such he can make his own choices, but because he is fair-skinned and a towhead I wish he would wear a shirt. WHO came out last year and equated tanning and UV rays with exposure to radiation and lead paint in terms of danger (although their report was based on tanning beds, it applies). Many studies have shown a direct link between over-exposure to sun at an early age and later cancer, and melanoma is almost universally fatal. When I talked about this with the drum major and corps folks he marched with last year, they just kind of rolled their eyes, which I understand- they see this as the least of their problems. But what about a rule that would require wearing shirts in rehearsal? If just a few kids could be saved from having tumors cut off their skin or worse later on, it seems like it would be worthwhile to me...I know it's a ridiculous thing, but I worry nonetheless. I'm really not trying to be a d-bag, but the tone of the bolded section of your post is a bit over-alarming, imho. I'm in no way saying that melanoma should be ignored or proper precautions should not be taken. You have a very valid point, and it is a concern given what our "kids" are doing over the summer. Having said that, here's some stuff I found on the Bucknell University website that shed a slightly different perspective. --------- o - Melanoma is a potentially lethal skin cancer, with a higher fatality rate than basal cell cancer and squamous cell cancer. o - An estimated 51,400 new cases of melanoma will be diagnosed in the year 2001 in the United States. o - As of 2001, an estimated 7,800 people will likely die of melanoma every year in the United States. o - More than 80% of skin cancer deaths are from melanoma o - Melanoma is the sixth most common cancer in men and the seventh most common in women. o - When melanoma is detected at its early stage, surgical removal cures the disease in most cases. If the disease has spread to lymph nodes, the 5-year survival rate is 30-40%. If the disease has spread to distant organs (liver, bones, brain, etc.) the 5-year survival rate is 12%. o - Genetic factors are the most important of the known risk factors, including the familial tendency to develop melanoma, prominent moles, and atypical moles. o - Overexposure to ultraviolet radiation in sunlight is believed to be a contributing factor to some cases of melanoma; short periods of intense exposure, such as sunbathing is associated with a 2-fold increase in melanoma risk. --------- So, basically what I'd prefer we say is that melanoma is a concern, along with everything else we need to be concerned about for our kids. Along with car accidents (41,000 killed in car crashes per year - avg last 10 yrs), drug/alcohol use, depression, and a myriad of other things. Yes, they should use sunscreen and cover up when they can, but we know they won't when the temps get too high. I, for one, am glad my kid's doing this, even with the increased potential for skin cancer, since I know she'll be at less risk for other behaviors that we tend to worry about. If she takes the appropriate precautions, and for the rest of her life pays close attention to her skin (and tells her doc, too), she should make out OK. I more concerned about the toll the activity takes on her joints at this point. Thanks for bringing this issue to the fore since we all need to be concerned about it, and we should make sure the kids know that dilligence about skin condition for the rest of their life is one of the prices they must pay for the activity. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suviduvi Posted June 23, 2011 Share Posted June 23, 2011 I have asked my daughter to become a skin specialist .......there will be thousands of cases in the years to come, if you don;t think that being in the sun is bad.....come see me, let me show you my arms and nose.... exposure was in the 60/70's problems started happening in the 90's Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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