Introduction: Most epidemiological studies of skin cancer have been performed in countries with very different population and geographic characteristics to Spain. Investigation of this disease in the Spanish population would therefore be of interest.
Method: Over a 12-month period, this prospective study recorded the types of skin cancer in consecutive patients who attended a dermatology clinic for the first time in health care area 3 of the health service of the Spanish autonomous community of Murcia. The demographic and social characteristics of these patients were determined. The results obtained were analyzed with the SPSS program, version 11.5, and compared with other studies conducted in other countries.
Results: Malignant tumors were the third most common presenting complaint (16.9 %) and the fourth most common secondary complaint (8 %). The patients with skin cancer were older (69.52 years; 95 % confidence interval [CI], 67.82-71.21 years) than the other patients in the sample (34.52 years; 95 % CI, 33.23-33.81 years), and there were more men (51.7 %) than women (48.3 %). These individuals had a low level of schooling, which varied according to the type of tumor, and most had outdoor jobs, with a significantly higher exposure to sunlight (3.35 h/d; 95 % CI, 3.08-3.62 h/d) than the other patients (2.72 h/d; 95 % CI, 2.58-2.86 h/d). Furthermore, fewer malignant cutaneous tumors were found in patients with a higher phototype. The length of time since onset of the presenting complaints was shorter for skin cancer (11.37 months; 95 % CI, 7.47-15.26 months) than for other skin diseases (25.83 months; 95 % CI, 22.87-28.80). Also, there were no seasonal peaks in consultations for skin cancer, and treatment was essentially based on surgery and cryotherapy. In addition, more of these patients had follow-up visits (84 %) than other dermatology patients (33 %).
Conclusions: Malignant or premalignant skin lesions are a common presenting skin complaint in the Mediterranean region, with differences in terms of attendance rates and predominant tumor type compared to other countries. This is probably due to the high sun exposure and predominance of skin phototype III. Similar studies for the whole of Spain would be of interest.