Personal vs. intrinsic melanoma risk awareness: Results of the EDIFICE Melanoma survey

Background The efficiency of skin cancer prevention programmes is strongly correlated with the information dispensed, and with the level of risk awareness, of the overall population on one hand, and on the other, of specific sub-populations, according to their risk profiles. Objectives The primary objective of this analysis was to establish a correlation between individual perceptions of the risk of developing a melanoma, and the recognized intrinsic risk factors for a given individual. Secondary objectives were to assess factors that are potentially associated with acceptable, high or low perception of melanoma risk. Methods The EDIFICE Melanoma survey was conducted in 2011 via telephone interviews of a representative sample of 1502 individuals aged 18 and older in the French population. Results Although most respondents (73%) had a true estimation of their intrinsic risk for melanoma, those who did not (underestimation, 17%; overestimation, 10%) had an attitude towards environmental risk factors (sun exposure, sun protection, sunbed use) that did not compensate for this misplaced perception. Conclusions Skin cancer prevention messages need to be reinforced, new methods of evaluating understanding of the messages need to be implemented, and both need to be included into personal risk assessment.