The UT Medical Center hosted Skinsolutions, a skin cancer awareness project, Tuesday and Wednesday this week. With Spring Break less than a week away, the event offered skin cancer education and the chance for students to see through age progression software how exposure to UV rays can affect how their skin will look in the future.

Representatives were present from the UT Medical Center Cancer Institute, Knoxville Dermatology Group, Clinique at West Town Mall and Knoxville Dermatopathology Laboratory.

Much of the activity at the event was centered on a computer that projected side-by-side images of what a person looks like today compared with years of harmful UV ray exposure.

The computer program, created in Toronto, takes a picture of your face and detects the areas of your skin that are sensitive to light. It also takes in to consideration ethnic traits, Georgette Samaras, the Cancer Institute's education coordinator, said.

"No one ever thinks that it can happen to them, and then they see this picture and hopefully it will hit a point," she said.

No one ever thinks that it can happen to them, and then they see this picture and hopefully it will hit a point. -Georgette Samaras, education coordinator at UT's Cancer Institute

Professional dermatologists also offered advice to students about proper skin care habits.

"Typically, we recommend a sunscreen with an SPF of about 30," Matthew Doppelt, a dermatologist at Baptist Hospital said. "You want to reapply every hour to every two hours depending on what your level of activity is and how much sun exposure you're getting."

In addition, Clinique's booth at the event showcased a number of products that can protect the skin from everyday sunlight. We often forget to protect ourselves from this common sun exposure, Ashley Pilat, business manager of Clinique at Belk West Town Mall, said.

The booth was also offering free makeovers for students in order to give them a chance to try the products.

Susan Huntsinger, an oncologist at the UT Medical Center, noted that skin cancer is something we can all get if we don't take care of our skin.
"Studies show that it's not just necessarily getting a sunburn that can put you at risk for developing problems," she said, "but it's a prolonged exposure to the sun that can also potentially cause harm."