Safe, Not Sorry
Skin cancer screenings can save lives
By: Lisa Andrus - Express Staff Writer
JERSEY SHORE — Sylvia Proffitt of Woolrich can breathe a sigh of relief
because none of the moles,
blotches, spots or bumps on her skin are cancerous — they’re just a part of
the natural aging
process.
Proffitt, 64 years old and a professed former sun worshipper, got the good
news during a free skin
cancer screening held by the Jersey Shore Hospital on Thursday morning.
Proffitt, who thinks it’s great that the hospital offers this service to
the community, said she
read about the screenings in the paper and decided she should be checked.
Then she simply called the
hospital and made an appointment.
“I’d rather be safe than sorry,” she said. “In my younger days, I was a sun
person. I’m more careful
now, but I’m still in the sun when I mow the lawn or go to outdoor
concerts.”
For Besheba English, 83, of Jersey Shore, who was concerned about a
suspicious spot on her chest,
the news was not as good. The doctor may have found something and will fill
out a paper reporting his
findings and recommendations to her regular doctor.
English considers herself fortunate because she almost didn’t get an
appointment. “My granddaughter
called and they were all full. Then I got a call that someone cancelled and
I got that appointment,”
she said. “It’s been a fine experience. At my age going out of town is hard
for me. It’s convenient
to come to Jersey Shore.”
The screenings are the brainchild of Dr. Asif Javed, internist at the
hospital, who also has a
background in dermatology. He and the hospital’s health education director,
Cindy Grenninger, RN,
BSN, developed the community outreach program last summer.
Dr. Javed took on the project, he said, because as a doctor at a community
hospital he sees the need
for an increase in free community outreach programs.
“There is no full-time dermatologist here so most people have to go to
Williamsport to be checked.
For many that’s difficult and a lot of elderly don’t have the finances. I
like working with skin
disease. By doing this I can kill two birds with one stone,” Dr. Javed
explained with a grin.
The screening process is simple and takes only about 10 minutes. Dr. Javed
examines marks on the
body and determines if any look suspicious for cancer. Most are just a
result of aging, he notes.
However, if he finds something, he recommends a biopsy.
“Skin disease is special. You look first and then ask questions. In other
kinds of medicine the
doctor asks questions about symptoms first. With skin it’s a matter of
looking and reassuring,” he
said.
Thursday’s screening was the first of two scheduled for consecutive
Thursdays, July 12 and 19 from 8
to 11 a.m. Appointments are given on a first-come basis. However, due to the
overwhelming response to
the program, the hospital has added another date, Thursday, July 26 and is
considering adding more.
“The program was well received,” Grenninger said. “It filled up fast and we
have 16 on the waiting
list. The doctor said he is willing to give more of his Thursday mornings,
so we may continue this
through the summer.”
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