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Good Question: Is There A Safe Amount Of Sun?

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) - The picture of a 27-year-old Alabama woman with skin cancer has gone viral. Tawny Willoughby, a registered nurse, posted the photo to Facebook of the damage caused by her basil cell carcinoma. She has what look like bloody cuts and burns on her face.

She wrote, "If anyone needs a little motivation to not lay in the tanning bed and sun here ya go! This is what skin cancer treatment can look like."

Most everyone knows about the connection between UV rays and skin cancer, but is there a safe amount of sun? Good Question.

"No," said Dr. Malinee Saxena, a dermatologist with My Dermatologist in Inver Grove Heights. She says 70 to 80 percent of our risk for skin cancer is due to sun exposure, while only 20 to 30 percent has to do with skin type.

According to the American Cancer Society, 3.5 million people are diagnosed with basal and squamous cell skin cancer each year, which isn't usually fatal but can cause serious disfiguration to a person's face. Another 73,000 people develop melanoma, a more dangerous type of skin cancer.

Dr. Liz Farhat, a dermatologist with Allina Health said small amounts of sun exposure, like a short walk to work, are safe, but she recommends people wear sunscreen every day. She says people should wear it in the winter, in the car and even when it's cloudy.

"You can get sun through your car windshield, so even in the winter driving, the sun can reflect off the snow," Dr. Farhat said. "Even on cloudy days, 85 percent of UV light still gets through the clouds."

The problem with too much UV light is the damage it causes to DNA.

"Most sun damage is cumulative," Farhat said. "When you're younger, you typically are able to repair that damage, but the older you get the less able your body can repair that damage."

And, as far getting Vitamin D from the sun, Farhat said that shouldn't stop people from wearing sunscreen. In the winter months, the sun isn't strong enough to help with Vitamin D. In the summer, many people don't synthesize Vitamin D with the sun. Instead, she recommends taking supplements.

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