No, I wasn't talking about THAT kind of protection, lol. But now that I've got your attention, give me a minute and maybe I can save you some of the time and expense that I recently went through myself.

I know I'm probably gonna sound like an old man here (which compared to most of you on this site I sort of am anyway), but if I can prevent one person from having the same experience as myself, I'll have done my good deed for the day as an ex-Boy Scout.

Like a lot of people, when I was younger I liked to spend a lot of time outdoors, and didn't think much about getting sunburned from too much time at the beach. You put on a little Solarcaine spray afterward and you were good to go. In my 20s when I was starting a new job, I wanted to look good and starting going to a tanning salon. My boss called me "the tan man". Well, years later I guess all that sun and UV exposure has caught up with me and I found out last December that I had skin cancer. One basal cell carcinoma on my right ear and another on my left leg. Basal cell carcinomas are the most common type of skin cancer, and not as serious as melanoma (which people can actually die from), but as I found out, if left untreated they can get larger and cause a lot of damage to your skin. The one on my ear had actually spread into the cartilage of my ear and I had to have surgery done and a little bit of my ear had to be removed to prevent the cancer from spreading any more. A little farther and it would have affected the nerves in my face. I spent 5 hours and over $2200 at one doctor just to get rid of that carcinoma on my ear. Altogether, between doctor's fees and lab fees for biopsies I ended up spending just over $3K to take care of the 2 skin cancers. That's $3000 that I could have put into my Monte... or left in the bank.

Even if you've got the insurance to cover this stuff, it's time consuming, potentially disfiguring or even fatal in some cases (melanoma) and completely avoidable by just putting on some sunscreen when you're outdoors and staying away from tanning beds. This is particularly important if you've got light skin and light colored hair and eyes like I do.
Save your money for making mods on your Monte, not giving it to doctors.

 

Good info...

 

Thanks SO MUCH for posting this thread! I had the same experience just last month...years of sun exposure without protection led to basal cell carcinoma on my cheek. Luckily it could be removed without any disfigurement. It's so important to get this information out, since this type of cancer is preventable.

So listen up, MC Forum members: before you go out to clean up or work on your Monte, slap on some sunscreen!!!

 

...Mark, thank you for posting & sharing your experience & warning to `all...Now, `if we would only listen closer to those that have travelled b-4 `us and taught us the evils of 2 much Sun....I am protected and have seen 2 many senior citizen's that have suffered from not complying & are or have paid the high price of 2 much exposure to the Sun & it's damaging Ray's.
Wish EveryOne a `Sunny/Protected Day/Life

 

Thanks for posting.

My own father is battling skin cancer. When young my dad and siblings helped my grandfather farm. All those hours out in the sun did catch up to my dad. So far he's had several surgeries to remove the skin cancer.

 

thanks for posting and warning us all very helpful info

 

Super good info. SPF 45 is a lifestyle for me here in FL. My uncle had basal carcinoma removed successfully removed a few years back. Modern medicine will knock that joker out for sure. Good insurance truly is better than good health.


In the interest of full disclosure: I was slightly disappoint that this thread was neither about sex nor guns.

 

I have always loved the sun and a tan.. Hopefully it wont catch up with me now that I am in my 40's. I never put on SPF when I sit at my pool or even when in Fla. I amke take heed though. Thanks

 

Thanks for posting the info Mark. Really good information to keep in mind.

That's why I work midnight shift. I haven't seen the sun in 16 years. Sorry, bad joke.

It's very important to always use protection when you're going to be out in the sun for long periods of time.

 

I used to tan when I was younger but can't do it anymore - I'm now allergic to the sun and it doesn't matter how much SPF I put on, I still break out in a painful rash all over the exposed skin. And that sucks during car show season cause I'm walking around in it judging. I found some Coppertone that has Zinc Oxide in it and it works the best out of a kazillion other products I have tried. It's in a really small bottle though.