Melanoma cases in children on the rise

More and more children are getting diagnosed with melanoma and although sun exposure is one cause there could be other unknown causes.

Excerpts from Knight Ridder News:

"You just can't say melanoma doesn't happen in children. It can," said Daniel Krowchuk, a professor of pediatrics and dermatology at Wake Forest University who heads the American Academy of Pediatrics' dermatology committee.

Experts suspect early sun exposure is one factor but acknowledge they don't know all the reasons.

Over the past decade, adults have been hearing public health messages to watch their sun exposure and be alert for suspicious changes in the shape and color of moles and other skin lesions. Now, Krowchuk said, pediatricians and parents alike also need to be vigilant.

"Sometimes it's right in front of a physician's nose and it's ignored or blown off as something else," said Casey Culbertson, a pediatric cardiologist at Children's Hospital and Research Center in Oakland, Calif., who heads the Melanoma Research Foundation.