The sun can affect our skin in ways we may never know. Nursing student Jenna Berger and her colleagues are trying to bring awareness to these effects the sun can have on our skin.

“One person dies every hour from melanoma,” said Berger. “Skin cancer is a huge problem, especially for our generation.”

Berger is working with colleagues Rachel Kiley, Theresa Ascani, Trevor Case, Ashleigh Bergeron, Bethany Stoner, Meredith Welch and Raylin Magliolo. They want students to understand the effects the sun can have on your skin and what a tan actually is.

“Beauty standards tell us that it’s ‘in’ to be tan,” said Berger. “A tan is actually evidence of damage to skin cells. Our goal is to educate students on the importance of prevention of skin cancer, ways they can protect their skin from the sun and how to identify any areas that may be cancerous or precancerous.” 

With melanoma being the leading cancer among young women, Ascani hopes students take this seriously.

“Increased sun exposure accounts for 90 percent of all melanoma cases,” said Ascani. “This affects all young people because melanoma is the leading cancer among young adults especially young women. I hope that students take the knowledge we share and translate it into their daily lives.”

These students will be taking time to inform the students of campus about the dangers of sun exposure next week. On Mar. 23, in the Student Union, Berger and her colleagues will have a booth set up all day.

“We will be doing pre and post-tests to evaluate the effectiveness of our education,” said Berger. “There will also be free gift bags for all students who participate. Our goal is to influence students to make more ‘sun-smart’ decisions on Spring Break.”

Ascani agrees that tans are great, but you need to be aware of the effects.

“While everyone loves a good tan, nothing is worth your life,” said Ascani. “So, we want everyone to be safe this Spring Break and don’t bake.”