Skin cancer is currently the most common form of cancer in the United States. In fact, according to the American Cancer Society, it accounts for nearly half of all cancers in America.
Angela Kershner / The Citizen
Le Moyne College students MacKenzie Crawford of Auburn, who recently lost her father to skin cancer, and Travis Tarr of Auburn, who recently had a melanoma removed, have organized a fundraising walk for skin cancer that will begin and end at the Owasco Fire Department on Sunday.
Le Moyne College students MacKenzie Crawford of Auburn, who recently lost her father to skin cancer, and Travis Tarr of Auburn, who recently had a melanoma removed, have organized a fundraising walk for skin cancer that will begin and end at the Owasco Fire Department on Sunday.
Unfortunately, despite skin cancer's prevalence, few people are aware of its seriousness: according to the Center for Disease Control, recent research indicates that 74 percent of young adults have no knowledge of malignant melanoma.
This was certainly true of MacKenzie Crawford of Auburn.
“My father, Stephen Crawford, passed away from skin cancer in December,” she said. “Before he was diagnosed with it, I thought skin cancer was just something like a mole that you got removed. I didn't know how serious it was until it happened to him.”
Soon after the death of her father, Crawford found out that her friend, Travis Tarr, also had melanoma.
“I had a mole on my shoulder,” Tarr explained. “I'd had it for years, and I just decided to get it taken off. I didn't expect anything of it, but once they started to do tests on it, they discovered that I had melanoma.”
Like Crawford, Tarr knew very little about skin cancer before his diagnosis. “To tell the truth, when the doctor called and said I had melanoma, I wasn't even sure what it was,” he said. “And come to find out, it was a type of skin cancer. I was really scared at first.”
Fortunately, Tarr was able to turn to Crawford for support.
“I've known MacKenzie all through middle school and high school,” he said, “So I talked to her and she was really supportive. She said it was great that I caught it now before it got any worse. It had spread down into my shoulder and my armpit, but the doctors went in and found the spots where it was and took it all out.”
Because they felt so blindsided by their experiences with skin cancer, Tarr and Crawford decided to make an effort to educate their community.
“We talked about it and thought it was a serious thing that people needed to know about,” Crawford said.
The result of their efforts is SPF 2006, a one-mile walk/run in support of skin cancer awareness that will be held at the Owasco Fire Department on Sunday. After the run, participants will enjoy a cookout, music and a raffle, and will learn important information about skin cancer prevention.
“It's about education and also it is to help raise money for the American Cancer Society,” Crawford said. “The money is going to go towards research on dermatology and skin cancer.”
Because Crawford and Tarr are both Le Moyne College students with busy schedules, organizing the benefit required a lot of determination. “Since a lot of the organizing was done during finals week, it was really hard, especially for Travis because he also had lacrosse practice,” Crawford added.
According to Tarr, Crawford made a huge effort to put the benefit together.
“She's done a great job juggling schoolwork and getting this walk set up,” he said. “MacKenzie has been working so hard these past months, and it's unbelievable what she's done. She deserves all the credit.”
“It's been hard,” Crawford agreed, “but a lot of people around Auburn have been great about helping out. Travis and I are both originally from Auburn, and everyone there has been great and just said okay, let me see what I can do.”
In fact, Crawford and Tarr have been overwhelmed by the support their community has shown them: more than 25 area sponsors have donated money, services or time. Dinosaur BBQ is even helping with food. “Community Computer Service helped out with a big donation to the American Cancer Society,” Crawford said, “and I've been getting in touch with coaches because I've been trying to get a lot of the high school athletics involved.”
Tarr, who is a standout on the Le Moyne lacrosse team, has also received a lot of support from his fellow athletes. “All the T-shirt sales from the national lacrosse championship, we always donate them to a charity,” he said. “And the first thing the team said this year was, ‘Let's donate to Travis and MacKenzie's cause.' So all the T-shirt sales and everything we make from going to the national championships will be donated to the American Cancer Society.”
A number of Tarr's teammates are also planning to join the walk/run. “A bunch of the guys will be coming to Auburn,” Tarr said. “They were there when I was going through the surgery. They were all really supportive, especially my coach. Anything I ever needed, he was there for me. So it's just great to see how your friends are there for you in a time of need.”
Although Tarr and Crawford hope that everyone attending the walk learns about skin cancer, they especially want to educate their peers.
“I want to target young people more,” Crawford said. “A lot of the athletes playing sports outside in the sun don't realize that they're getting burned. We want them to be careful about it. Also, in this day and age, tanning is the new thing. We're trying to get across that if you're going to do it, which most girls are, just be careful about it. Go get checked up, and don't fry yourself.”
Tarr agreed. “It's a simple thing: if you go out in the sun, just put sunscreen on,” he said. “And if you have any moles that are growing or kind of dark, just get them checked out every once in awhile.”
According to The Skin Cancer Foundation, a mole is considered suspicious if it is asymmetrical (i.e. the two sides of the mole do not match), has uneven borders, is over six millimeters in diameter, or has changed in size, shape, color or elevation.
Tarr stressed the importance of having such moles checked out. “If you catch melanoma early, the doctors can clear it up like they did in my case,” he said. “But if you're not aware of it, like a lot of people aren't, then it could be deadly. That was the scariest part for me - I didn't know how serious it could have been.”
If you would like to participate in SPF 2006, you can pick up information at The Printery in Auburn.
“There are sponsor forms down at the Printery, and there are tickets for sale there, too,” Crawford said. “The tickets are if you don't want to do the run/walk, you can just come and support it, pick up some information, have food and have a good time.”
Crawford and Tarr hope that their skin protection fundraiser will become a new tradition in Auburn.
“It being the first year, we really want to get the word out there,” Tarr said. “Because we hope that it will grow in coming years. We'd like to do it every year - it's a great way to kick off the summer and just get the word out there that this is a serious issue.”
This was certainly true of MacKenzie Crawford of Auburn.
“My father, Stephen Crawford, passed away from skin cancer in December,” she said. “Before he was diagnosed with it, I thought skin cancer was just something like a mole that you got removed. I didn't know how serious it was until it happened to him.”
Soon after the death of her father, Crawford found out that her friend, Travis Tarr, also had melanoma.
“I had a mole on my shoulder,” Tarr explained. “I'd had it for years, and I just decided to get it taken off. I didn't expect anything of it, but once they started to do tests on it, they discovered that I had melanoma.”
Like Crawford, Tarr knew very little about skin cancer before his diagnosis. “To tell the truth, when the doctor called and said I had melanoma, I wasn't even sure what it was,” he said. “And come to find out, it was a type of skin cancer. I was really scared at first.”
Fortunately, Tarr was able to turn to Crawford for support.
“I've known MacKenzie all through middle school and high school,” he said, “So I talked to her and she was really supportive. She said it was great that I caught it now before it got any worse. It had spread down into my shoulder and my armpit, but the doctors went in and found the spots where it was and took it all out.”
Because they felt so blindsided by their experiences with skin cancer, Tarr and Crawford decided to make an effort to educate their community.
“We talked about it and thought it was a serious thing that people needed to know about,” Crawford said.
The result of their efforts is SPF 2006, a one-mile walk/run in support of skin cancer awareness that will be held at the Owasco Fire Department on Sunday. After the run, participants will enjoy a cookout, music and a raffle, and will learn important information about skin cancer prevention.
“It's about education and also it is to help raise money for the American Cancer Society,” Crawford said. “The money is going to go towards research on dermatology and skin cancer.”
Because Crawford and Tarr are both Le Moyne College students with busy schedules, organizing the benefit required a lot of determination. “Since a lot of the organizing was done during finals week, it was really hard, especially for Travis because he also had lacrosse practice,” Crawford added.
According to Tarr, Crawford made a huge effort to put the benefit together.
“She's done a great job juggling schoolwork and getting this walk set up,” he said. “MacKenzie has been working so hard these past months, and it's unbelievable what she's done. She deserves all the credit.”
“It's been hard,” Crawford agreed, “but a lot of people around Auburn have been great about helping out. Travis and I are both originally from Auburn, and everyone there has been great and just said okay, let me see what I can do.”
In fact, Crawford and Tarr have been overwhelmed by the support their community has shown them: more than 25 area sponsors have donated money, services or time. Dinosaur BBQ is even helping with food. “Community Computer Service helped out with a big donation to the American Cancer Society,” Crawford said, “and I've been getting in touch with coaches because I've been trying to get a lot of the high school athletics involved.”
Tarr, who is a standout on the Le Moyne lacrosse team, has also received a lot of support from his fellow athletes. “All the T-shirt sales from the national lacrosse championship, we always donate them to a charity,” he said. “And the first thing the team said this year was, ‘Let's donate to Travis and MacKenzie's cause.' So all the T-shirt sales and everything we make from going to the national championships will be donated to the American Cancer Society.”
A number of Tarr's teammates are also planning to join the walk/run. “A bunch of the guys will be coming to Auburn,” Tarr said. “They were there when I was going through the surgery. They were all really supportive, especially my coach. Anything I ever needed, he was there for me. So it's just great to see how your friends are there for you in a time of need.”
Although Tarr and Crawford hope that everyone attending the walk learns about skin cancer, they especially want to educate their peers.
“I want to target young people more,” Crawford said. “A lot of the athletes playing sports outside in the sun don't realize that they're getting burned. We want them to be careful about it. Also, in this day and age, tanning is the new thing. We're trying to get across that if you're going to do it, which most girls are, just be careful about it. Go get checked up, and don't fry yourself.”
Tarr agreed. “It's a simple thing: if you go out in the sun, just put sunscreen on,” he said. “And if you have any moles that are growing or kind of dark, just get them checked out every once in awhile.”
According to The Skin Cancer Foundation, a mole is considered suspicious if it is asymmetrical (i.e. the two sides of the mole do not match), has uneven borders, is over six millimeters in diameter, or has changed in size, shape, color or elevation.
Tarr stressed the importance of having such moles checked out. “If you catch melanoma early, the doctors can clear it up like they did in my case,” he said. “But if you're not aware of it, like a lot of people aren't, then it could be deadly. That was the scariest part for me - I didn't know how serious it could have been.”
If you would like to participate in SPF 2006, you can pick up information at The Printery in Auburn.
“There are sponsor forms down at the Printery, and there are tickets for sale there, too,” Crawford said. “The tickets are if you don't want to do the run/walk, you can just come and support it, pick up some information, have food and have a good time.”
Crawford and Tarr hope that their skin protection fundraiser will become a new tradition in Auburn.
“It being the first year, we really want to get the word out there,” Tarr said. “Because we hope that it will grow in coming years. We'd like to do it every year - it's a great way to kick off the summer and just get the word out there that this is a serious issue.”
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