Abstract

Background: Skin cancer is the most common type of cancer worldwide and the ninth most common malignancy in Saudi Arabia. This study aims to determine the awareness about skin cancer and prevention among the adult population of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Methodology: A descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out with 500 adults randomly selected from the Riyadh region of Saudi Arabia. A three-section questionnaire was used for data collection.
Results: The study showed that 26% of the participants were working under direct exposure to sunlight. More than half of the participants (63%) were exposed to sunlight for 1-2 hours, whereas 17% had 3-4 hours of exposure to sunlight daily. About 12.2% of the participants had a history of tanning habit, and 0.7% reported the cases of skin cancer. About 53% wore a hat or hijab, 58% wore sunglasses, and 57% applied sunscreen when exposed to sunlight. Nearly 38% forgot to apply sunscreen, and 32% felt that it was too hot to use. 51% were aware that sun exposure caused skin cancer, 5% felt that sunburn causes lasting damage to the skin, and 41% said that melanoma was the least dangerous type of skin cancer.
Conclusion: The study showed a lack of knowledge about skin cancer and effective preventive measures and reported the need for urgent educational intervention to raise awareness among the Riyadh adult population

Key words: Melanoma, prevention, awareness, adult population, knowledge, skin cancer