title: Lack of selective attendance of participants at skin cancer/melanoma screening clinics.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Whether persons who come for skin cancer/melanoma screening are those at highest risk for the disease remains a debatable issue.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  Our purpose was to evaluate the appropriateness of self-selection of persons attending screening clinics.
  
  
  METHODS
  We studied the frequency of malignant and/or premalignant clinical diagnoses according to certain demographic characteristics as a measure of selective attendance among 2463 persons screened in the regions of Arnhem and Eindhoven in 1990.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The referral rates for tentative malignant and/or premalignant diagnoses were more or less similar in men (11.8%) and women (9.6%); in persons with symptoms (11.6%) and those who were symptom free (9.3%); in attendants from the towns in which the screenings were held (11.4%) and those coming from distant communities (9.0%); and in persons who attended for specific skin lesions (10.7%) and those who opted for general skin examination (8.8%). The referral rate was 9.2% in persons younger than 70 years of age against 18.5% in those 70 years of age or older (p < 0.001). Most presumptive melanoma diagnoses (15 of 22) were recorded in persons 50 years of age or older.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our findings suggest that participants of free skin cancer/melanoma screening clinics, on average, are unable to estimate their own risk profile properly.
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Sint Anna Hospital, Oss, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: F H
authors.initials: FH
authors.lastname: Rampen
authors.forename: P J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Berretty
authors.forename: B E
authors.initials: BE
authors.lastname: Van Huystee
authors.forename: L A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Kiemeney
authors.forename: C H
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Nijs
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008403:Mass Screening; D008545:Melanoma / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009426:Netherlands / Q000453:epidemiology; D011230:Precancerous Conditions / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D012017:Referral and Consultation / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012737:Sex Factors; D012878:Skin Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*