Skin Cancer Screening at Brick Beach Saturday

Although fun in the sun is important at this time of year, Ocean County health officials want you to be safe.

That is why, tomorrow, at three different locations in Ocean County, they will be hosting free skin cancer screenings. The screenings will be offered between 10 am. and 2 p.m. at the 20th Street Beach in Ship Bottom, at Fourth and Ocean Avenues in Ortley Beach, and at Brick Beach III, along Route 35 North.

Part of the "Choose Your Cover" campaign first initiated years ago by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the campaign emphasizes that young people can have fun outdoors while protecting their skin from the sun by choosing five sun protection options: seeking shade, covering up, getting a hat, wearing sunglasses, and applying sunscreen.

A collaboration of physicians, advanced practice nurses, hospitals, health departments, community organizations, municipalities, lifeguards, corporations and volunteers have joined together to fight melanoma and other skin cancers through this campaign. Because of these efforts, numerous participants of Choose Your Cover have reaped the benefits of lifesaving early detection, and still hundreds of others have been educated and have adopted sun safe behaviors, according to county health officials.

The event is being hosted by the Long Beach Island Health Department, the Ocean County Cancer Coalition and Southern Ocean Medical Center. For more information, contact Debra Levinson at 732-286-3693.