|Listen:||Note: There is multimedia content on this page which
requires the Flash viewer. To see it, download and install the
Flash plugin here: Macromedia Flash Player| Melanoma is the most
serious form of skin cancer, with nearly 60,000 people in the
United States diagnosed with this cancer each year. It comprises
only a fraction of all skin cancers, but is the most deadly.
But, says Dr. Susan Kesmodel, a surgical oncologist at the
University of Maryland Marlene and Stewart Greenebaum Cancer
Center in Baltimore, melanoma is a highly curable cancer if it
is detected and treated early. Dr. Kesmodel, who is also an
assistant professor of surgery at the University of Maryland
School of Medicine, says that surgery is often the most
effective treatment, but radiation therapy and chemotherapy also
can be used in cases where the cancer has spread. She tells
interviewer Karen Warmkessel that the best way for people to
avoid getting melanoma is to limit their sun exposure and to
wear protective clothing and sunscreen