Flex League - Doubles/Singles 

What tennis will you play when your spring league is over?  The Flex League is "tennis on your terms".  In a flex league, you play against players at your level...at your convenience.

Basal and squamous cell skin cancers have been linked to long-term cumulative sun exposue - the kind farmers and sailors are exposed to. For melanoma, the most serious of skin cancers, doctors believe that the risk comes rather from intense, intermittent exposure to the sun's rays - a vacation on the beach and a painful sunburn.

Doctors still have much to learn about the causes of melanoma, but they know that persons who spend considerable time in the sun or under tanning lamps have an increased risk of this cancer that takes the lives of 8,000 Americans each year.

Melanoma typically originates in the pigment-producing cells (melanocytes) of the skin. If detected early, it can usually be cured. But unlike other skin cancers, it is capable of spreading. And when it does, it can be fatal.

Persons who live in sunny areas such as Florida, Hawaii and Australia have a higher risk of melanoma, but mortality rates have decreased in these areas in recent years as concerted efforts have been made to educate the public about the dangers of ultraviolet radiation and the need to wear protective clothing and sun screen.

The risk is highest among persons with red or blonde hair and a skin type that tends to freckle or burn rather than tan. Also at risk are persons with numerous moles.

The average person may have as many as 40 moles. But if they are small, have a generally uniform color and a distinct border, there is usually nothing to worry about. A person with 50 or more moles has a risk 10 times higher than that of other persons, and the risk is even higher if some of these moles are atypical in shape, size, color or appearance.

Whether you have a few or many, it's important to pay attention to the moles and other growths on your skin. Melanoma frequently develops out of a new mole or an existing one that suddenly starts showing changes such as scaliness, itching, oozing, bleeding or spreading of pigment into the surrounding skin.

The ABCDE guide may help. Be suspicious of any growth that is: Asymmetical; has a poorly defined Border; includes many Colors; has a Diameter greater than 1/4 inch, or is Evolving in appearance.

In fair-skinned individuals or those with numerous moles, the role of sun exposure is clear. On the other hand, there is also believed to be a strong genetic component.

Albinos, with no skin pigment, rarely get melanoma (although they are vulnerable to squamous cell skin cancer). African Americans and others with dark skin pigment do. And the cancer sometimes appears in areas of the body that receive little or no sun exposure - the soles of the feet, nail beds, inside the mouth or in the vagina. These hidden melanomas are difficult to detect and frequently mistaken for bruises.

In dark skinned individuals, melanoma is more likely to occur in a hidden area. These melanomas are believed to have a strong genetic component, and, in some cases, they are more resistant to treatment.

A genetic link between melanoma and breast cancer has been discovered. Women with breast cancer have a 1.4 to 2.7 times risk of getting melanoma, and women with melanoma have a similarly higher risk of getting breast cancer.

About half of Americans who develop melanoma have a mutation in the BRAF gene, and a drug now being studied apparently works by blocking a malfunctioning protein this gene produces in cancer cells.

There is still much to be learned about the genetic component of melanoma. But whether your risks are genetic, environmental or both, your course of action is the same: avoid intense sun exposure; wear protective clothing when spending time outdoors; schedule regular skin examinations with a dermatologist or your family practitioner and become familiar with the landscape of your skin so that you can report unusual changes.

All of these are consistent with the efforts to educate the public about melanoma, its risk factors and the need for early detection-efforts that have reduced the mortality rates for this potentially lethal skin cancer.