Men are twice as likely as women to not protect their skin in the sun, despite more men dying from melanoma than women, according to research due to be released at the British Association of Dermatologists annual conference in Glasgow next month.

The shocking survey of 1213 adults formed part of the Northern Ireland Omnibus Survey published in September 2008, a regular survey of the lifestyle and views of the people of Northern Ireland*.

It also found that people in their teens and early twenties are less likely than any other age group to use sun protection, despite increasing numbers of melanoma being diagnosed in this age group.

One in ten people surveyed (10%) take no protective measures at all against sun exposure (compared to 8% in 2000).

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There has been an alarming rise in new cases of the deadliest form of skin cancer in the UK, with binge tanning cited as a main reason, said a leading cancer charity.

The number of UK people diagnosed with malignant melanoma, the potentially fatal type of skin cancer. has gone over the 10,000 barrier to reach an all time high of 10,400 according to figures released earlier today by Cancer Research UK.

Experts are concerned about the dramatic rise in the numbers in recent decades and believe that binge tanning, either at home or abroad, when people take advantage of sunseeking package holidays, is the main reason.

Cancer Research UK’s director of health information, Sara Hiom, told the press the figures are very worrying.

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Arthropods and mollusks are Nature’s true bluebloods - thanks to hemocyanin, an oxygen-carrying large protein complex, which can even be turned into the enzymatically active chemical phenoloxidase.

Scientists have long known that members of the phenoloxidase family are involved in skin and hair coloring. When they are mutated, they can cause albinism - the loss of coloring in skin and hair. Produced over abundantly, they are associated with the deadly skin cancer melanoma.

In an elegant structural study, a team of Baylor College of Medicine and German researchers explain how hemocyanin is activated - a finding that could lead to a better understanding of both ends of the skin and hair color spectrum. A report of their work appears in the current issue of the journal Structure.

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The study - funded by Cancer Research UK, The Institute of Cancer Research (ICR) and the Wellcome Trust - reveals a new class of potential drug candidates that are designed to treat malignant melanoma - the deadliest form of skin cancer.

This team previously showed that a protein called BRAF, which is mutated in 50 to 70 per cent of human melanomas, is responsible for driving the growth of melanoma cells.

The chemicals they have developed, called pyridoimidazolones, block the activity of the mutated BRAF protein and so inhibit the growth of melanoma cells.

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In recognition of Skin Cancer Awareness Month and the increasing incidence of skin cancer in the United States, the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery (ASDS) has created a free Skin Self Exam (SSE) kit available on the Society’s Facebook site. The kit and site were created to educate younger audiences about the potential dangers of skin cancer and the importance of early detection methods.

“Melanoma is the deadliest form of skin cancer and is the second most common cancer affecting women aged 20 to 29,” says Robert Weiss, M.D., president of the ASDS. “The 5-year survival rate for people whose melanoma is detected and treated before it spreads is 99 percent; therefore, it’s critical that consumers perform regular self-skin exams. Through Facebook, the ASDS is pleased to provide young women and men who are at highest risk for skin cancer with resources that could potentially save their lives.

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