Thursday, February 5, 2009

Red Cheeks

I went to the dermatologist today. I've had a couple of little skin things kind of bugging me, nothing major or scary. A bump on my chin that i cut a couple of times this month, and a mole or mark on the front of my right thigh that seems to get irritated by my cycling shorts.

What made me finally take action and call for an appointment? The Super Bowl halftime show, and specifically Bruce Springsteen and his public service announcement for The Danny Fund. Read more about it here. Danny Federici was the E Street band organist and recently died of skin cancer.



The bullet points you should take note of:

  • Be aware of the dangers of the sun
  • Take precaution, like sunblock and staying out of the sun
  • Have yourself checked out regularly by a dermatologist from head to toe.
The full body check took no more than 15 minutes. I had a female doc and nurse present, but I suppose if you aren't comfortable you could ask for same gender. I kept my underwear on. I had a silly paper gown on, but really this exam was not a big deal. We all should have it done annually.

The doctor suggested i have rosacea, a reddening of the skin on my face caused by broken capillaries. I don't know, i think I might have been blushing just a little. And it is 20 degrees outside. She gave me a script for a cream to use. I will try it. She also told me to use sun block. Yep, I want to do that too. Every day, even when its cold out!

2 comments:

Simeon of Kent said...

Ooh, I should go to a dermatologist, thanks for the reminder. I've got a lot of moles and one of them in particular has been itching a lot and has gone a bit dark and crusty. Nice...

Ski Dad said...

I go every 6 months. My dad has had 2 bouts with melanoma each attack successfully repelled due to early warning.

It seems to run in the family, and since we as triathletes are exposed to the sun allot it is even more important.