The purpose of this study is to examine the association between parents' fatalism about melanoma and their children's sun protection, and the potential moderating role of parent-child communication. In this observational study of = 69 melanoma-surviving parents of children ages 8-17, parents reported on their own melanoma fatalism, as well as their children's sun safety behaviors and parent-child discussion about sun safety. Parent gender, family history of melanoma, and frequency of parent-child discussions moderated the relationship between parents' fatalism and children's sun safety behaviors.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Children of parents who had melanoma are more likely to develop skin cancer themselves owing to shared familial risks. The prevention of sunburns and promotion of sun-protective behaviors are essential to control cancer among these children. The Family Lifestyles, Actions and Risk Education (FLARE) intervention will be delivered as part of a randomized controlled trial to support parent-child collaboration to improve sun safety outcomes among children of melanoma survivors.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInt J Environ Res Public Health
March 2023
Ultraviolet radiation (UVR) exposure is the primary modifiable risk factor for melanoma. Wearable UVR sensors provide a means of quantifying UVR exposure objectively and with a lower burden than self-report measures used in most research. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the relationship between detected UVR exposure and reported sunburn occurrence.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSkin cancer has become increasingly common among young adults; however, this population does not consistently adhere to recommended methods for preventing the disease. Interventions in college settings have relied on appearance-focused appeals and have not been able to examine the cumulative effect of multiple behavior change and skin cancer risk communication strategies. The goal of the current study was to examine the unique and combined impacts of personalized ultraviolet (UV) radiation photographs, genetic testing for skin cancer risk, and general skin cancer prevention education.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Diagnoses of both melanoma and nonmelanoma skin cancers are becoming increasingly common among young adults. Interventions in this population are a priority because they do not consistently follow skin cancer prevention recommendations.
Objectives: The goal of the current study was to examine college students' perspectives on and experience with receiving a skin cancer prevention intervention that provided personalized skin cancer risk feedback in the form of an ultraviolet (UV) photograph, the results of genetic testing for common skin cancer risk variants, and/or general skin cancer prevention education.
Objective: One way to communicate skin cancer risk is through ultraviolet (UV) photographs, which can depict the target person (tailored visual) or someone else (stock visual). There is a need for more longitudinal research examining the relative impact of tailored UV photographs compared with other message interventions that could increase sun safe behaviors.
Method: Students 14-18 years of age ( = 654) at eleven high schools in Utah were recruited to participate in a longitudinal experiment (assessments: pretest, posttest, 1 month follow-up) comparing the relative persuasive impact of receiving either (a) stock and tailored UV photographs or (b) stock UV photographs and an implementation intervention on outdoor tanning behavior.
Prevention of skin cancer involves decreasing exposure to ultraviolet radiation (UVR) and avoiding sunburn, especially early in life. Individuals living in urban versus rural areas, as defined by the Rural Urban Commuting Area (RUCA) code classification, have different risks for skin cancer, likely due to differing patterns of outdoor activities and preventive behaviors employed when outdoors. However, few studies have examined differences in outdoor activities between rural and urban individuals and examined this among both adults and children.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Emerging UV radiation (UVR) monitoring devices may present an opportunity to integrate such technology into skin cancer prevention interventions. However, little is known about the effects of using a wearable UVR monitor on adults' and children's sun protection-related behaviors and attitudes (eg, cancer worry and perceived risk). Understanding the potential role of reactivity and seasonal effects will help inform the use of objective monitors in the context of skin cancer prevention research, including intervention studies.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: In the United States, melanoma is the 5 most common cancer. Reducing ultraviolet radiation (UVR) exposure is essential for the prevention of melanoma. Objectively assessing individual-level UVR exposure with the use of wearable technology offers a promising tool for reducing UVR exposure.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFUltraviolet radiation (UVR) exposure is a primary risk factor for the development of melanoma. However, adults and adolescents often do not engage in preventive behaviors to reduce UVR exposure. Rural residents may be at higher risk for melanoma due to lower use of sun protection strategies, which increases their overall UVR exposure compared to those who live in urban areas.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPredispositional genetic testing of children for adult-onset health risks is typically only used when prevention and screening measures have utility during childhood. Little is known about how children and their parents may use predispositional risk information, including whether it changes their interactions around risk-reducing prevention and screening behaviors. The current study examined perspectives on family interactions around skin cancer prevention and control practices through 1 year after test reporting and counseling among children who received melanoma predispositional genetic testing and their parents.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPurpose: The purpose of the current study was to evaluate differences in reported use of sun protection, tanning behaviors, skin cancer-related knowledge, and perceived risk between rural and urban high school students in a geographic area with high rates of melanoma.
Methods: A total of 1,570 high school students (56.8% female) from urban (6 schools) and rural (7 schools) geographic areas in Utah completed questionnaires assessing sun protection and tanning behaviors, skin cancer-related knowledge, and perceived risk for skin cancer.
Multicomponent skin cancer preventive interventions for adolescents that aim to decrease ultraviolet radiation (UVR) exposure and sunburns are particularly needed given their intentional tanning and infrequent use of sun protection. The purpose of this study was to conduct an early-phase study within the Multiphase Optimization Strategy framework that experimentally tested four unique intervention components targeting high school students' skin cancer prevention behaviors. Schools (11 total, N = 1,573 students) were assigned to receive one of four interventions: skin cancer education (control), education plus a sunscreen activity (to illustrate sunscreen's UVR-blocking properties), or behavior change worksheet (sun protection goal setting and planning) or receipt of a personalized UV damage photograph (photograph of facial damage).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground/objectives: Children with an elevated familial risk for melanoma inconsistently implement sun protection behaviors that could mitigate their melanoma risk. Little is known about perceived barriers to child sun protection among this at-risk group and their parents, and the extent to which perceived barriers are associated with child sun protection. The goal of this study was to examine, among children with a family history of melanoma, the frequency with which children and their parents reported barriers to child sun protection and the extent to which barriers were associated with reported use of sun protection among children.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMelanoma is the deadliest form of skin cancer. Screening can aid in early disease detection, when treatment is more effective. Although there are currently no consensus guidelines regarding skin screening for pediatric populations with elevated familial risk for melanoma, at-risk children with the help of their parents and healthcare providers may implement skin self-exams.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPurpose: This study evaluated oral medication adherence among adolescents and young adults (AYAs) with cancer during a trial of a smartphone-based medication reminder application (app).
Methods: Twenty-three AYAs receiving at least one prescribed, scheduled oral medication related to their outpatient cancer treatment participated in this 12-week single-group interrupted time series longitudinal design study. Baseline oral medication adherence was monitored using electronic monitoring caps for 4 weeks.
J Pediatr Oncol Nurs
September 2019
Melanoma prevention is essential for children who are at elevated risk for the disease due to family history. However, children who carry a familial risk for the disease do not optimally adhere to recommended melanoma preventive behaviors. The current study sought to identify perceived barriers to and facilitators of children's engagement in melanoma preventive behaviors among children at elevated risk for melanoma due to family history of the disease (i.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSoc Work Health Care
April 2018
This study explored whether and how childhood cancer survivors in Korea ask and resolve the question of what may have caused their cancer. Thirty-one childhood cancer survivors participated in in-depth interviews about their self-questioning process in this regard. The findings indicate that Korean childhood cancer survivors pondered this question alone due to the stigma attached to cancer in the family and society.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: To explore the feasibility and acceptability of use of a smartphone medication reminder application to promote adherence to oral medications among adolescents and young adults (AYAs) with cancer.
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Sample & Setting: 23 AYAs with cancer from a Children's Oncology Group-affiliated children's hospital and a National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center in Salt Lake City, UT.
Purpose: The aim of this study was to determine risk for melanoma among individuals who have a first- or second-degree relative with a history of melanoma, based on the unaffected individual's age and age at diagnosis of the relative.
Methods: The study employed a case-control design using a statewide database linked with a Surveillance Epidemiology and End Results cancer registry. A population-based sample of individuals who received at least one diagnosis of first primary, malignant melanoma (n = 14,281), as well as their first- and second-degree relatives, was included.
Adherence to oral medications during maintenance therapy is essential for pediatric patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Self-reported or electronic monitoring of adherence indicate suboptimal adherence, particularly among particular sociodemographic groups. This study used medication refill records to examine adherence among a national sample of pediatric patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: To examine the acceptability of and preliminary effects associated with a novel educational intervention for children at elevated risk for melanoma. The intervention incorporated information on mechanisms through which melanoma preventive behaviors mitigate risk for melanoma and was delivered to parents and children concurrently.
Methods: Twenty-two parents (with a personal history of melanoma or spouse with a history of melanoma) and 33 children (mean age 11.
Despite the highly preventable nature of skin cancer, it remains the most commonly diagnosed form of cancer in the United States. Recommendations for a complete skin cancer prevention regimen include engaging in photoprotection (e.g.
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