I began to learn more about Skin Cancer when my Aunt died in Santa Barbara from an undiagnosed Melanoma that metasticized in 1995

My wife and daughter and my mother and I attended her funeral then in Santa Barbara in 1995. We were all surprised she died of a melanoma because skin Cancer hadn't happened that we knew of before then in our family so it was quite a shock. I think she was about 70 years old then.

My mother and I who had both spent a lot of time in the sun hiking and in the mountains and in the snow realized that we likely should see a dermatologist for the first time in our lives too.

My mother and I had to have many pre-cancers removed before they became more serious.

The worst one was on the right side of my nose so the doctor cut out a triangle of flesh about 1 inch in all three directions of the triangle so it was sort of like getting a facelift on one side of my face. However, over time both sides of my face looked the same as the sewed together part stretched out eventually the same on both sides of my face. After that, I had many basil cell and squamosh cell pre-cancers removed on my back and my legs mostly ever since.

The main change in me was that I realized I needed to protect my face from more skin Cancers and I did this by wearing usually a baseball cap of some kind or even a safari hat with a neck guard whenever I go outside now. I do this religiously simply because I don't want to die of skin cancer or cancers ever since.

Another thing we learned is that people actually get more skin cancers where it is cloudy a lot and think they are okay simply because the cancer causing rays of the sun come through the clouds and people aren't sun burnt so they think they are okay but they are not.

At least when the sun is out you get sunburned so you know you are not okay but when it is cloudy that doesn't happen and then this tricks you into thinking you are okay when you are not.

So, I don't ever usually go outside without a hat on to protect my face and scalp from more skin cancers.

Also, my mother and I until she passed away in 2008 when to the dermatologist to check for more precancers every 3 to 6 months. I have continued on like this from 1995 until today checking for other things that could be problematic. It's best to get these things frozen off (which can feel like you are being burned somewhat) because you are giving the precancers frostbite on your face or back or arms or legs usually. Because if we are outside we naturally even if we are in bathing suits tend to turn our backs to the sun because most people don't like staring into the sun unless they are trying to go blind or something.

So, this is why you get a lot of precancers on your back and shoulders and also on your face over time in the sun. So, actually sun bathing eventually can kill you if you have the wrong kind of skin when you do this. And sunblock only protects you so much.

Also, I have a theory about cataracts which is that you should wear sunglasses outside to put off a cataract operation on each eye as long as possible. But, if you live long enough you likely will have to have a cataract operation by the time you are 80 years old or so at the latest. So, this is something to think about too.

So, hopefully you have learned something here that might save your life that came from my aunt dying of a melanoma in 1995.