Work

Recognizing Latinos’ range of skin pigment and phototypes to enhance skin cancer prevention

Year: 2017

Type: article

Abstract: Latinos in the United States may have the mistaken assumption that their natural pigmentation protects them from developing skin cancer that, effectively, serves as a barrier to Latinos receiving education in primary and secondary prevention of skin cancer. Latino adults of Mexican or Puerto Rican heritage attending community health fairs in the greater Chicago area responded to a culturally informed and sensitive measure for sunburn and tan, which was previously adapted to capture skin irritation with tenderness from the sun occurring in darker skin types (n = 350). By self-reported responses and spectrophotometry assessment of constitutive pigmentation, adapted Fitzpatrick skin types (FST) ranged from skin type I-IV in the Mexican American participants and from II to V in the Puerto Rican participants. The objectively measured proportion of adapted FST II skin type was greater than commonly perceived and demonstrated that many Latinos do indeed have sun-sensitive skin.

Source: Pigment Cell & Melanoma Research

DOI: 10.1111/pcmr.12598

Authors: June K. Robinson, Frank J. Penedo, Jennifer L. Hay, Nina G. Jablonski

Institutions: Northwestern University, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Pennsylvania State University

Language: English

Topic: Skin Protection and Aging

Subfield: Dermatology

Field: Medicine

Domain: Health Sciences

SDG: Good health and well-being

Open Access status: green

Funder: National Cancer Institute