Which Anti-aging Creams Get an “A”?
June 27, 2011
If you wear a daily facial cream with the expectation that it will protect your skin from the sun’s ultraviolet radiation, be sure it provides broad-spectrum protection against both UV-B and UV-A rays. While UV-B rays are the chief cause of skin reddening and sunburn, UV-A rays penetrate the skin more deeply and are known to play a major role in skin aging and wrinkling. Recent research shows that UV-A rays damage skin cells called “keratinocytes” in the basal layer of the epidermis, where most skin cancers occur. Yet, in a recent review of 29 top-selling daily facial creams, researchers found that, regardless of cost, popularity, or sun protection factor (SPF), most contained inadequate protection against photo-aging from UV-A rays.
P.S. If you spend the majority of your day shielded from direct sunlight by only window glass, you need UV-A protection more than UV-B protection because UV-A penetrates window glass while UV-B is blocked.
New Melanoma Drug!
June 21, 2011
The important thing to remember about melanoma is that it is nearly always curable if caught early. In fact, if melanoma is diagnosed when it is no more than a skin spot, the five-year survival rate is 99 percent. On the other hand, once the fast-growing skin cancer spreads, the survival rate drops to 15 percent. However, an important step forward has recently been made with FDA approval of a new drug that has been designed to treat late-stage melanoma. Injectable Yervoy belongs to a class of immunotherapy drugs that work by mobilizing the body’s immune system to destroy the cancer. While the drug is not a cure, it has helped extend the lives of patients with late-stage melanoma.
P.S. Prior to the approval of Yervoy, the only other drugs used to treat advanced melanoma have been dacarbazine (a chemotherapy agent) and interleukin-2, which is quite toxic.
The Villages Office