IPMBA's Annual Police on Bikes Conference features an excellent mix of on-bike and classroom sessions presented by experts from around the country. On-bike sessions include basic, intermediate and advanced bicycle handling skills, firearms skills, bike patrol tactics, and officer survival. Classroom sessions include community policing, safety and liability, health & fitness, and bicycle maintenance. The Conference also features the nation's largest bicycle patrol-related product exhibition.

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Cycling's Deadliest Risks Don't Always Involve Accidents

Bike medic makes a case for sunscreen

By Steve Lyle
Williamson Medical Center EMS, Franklin (TN)

For several months, I had ignored the mole on my neck. Despite my wife's complaints about it, I was sure it was nothing. Everybody has moles.

Then one day at work, a fellow bike medic pointed out that this particular mole had characteristics consistent with melanoma, or skin cancer. After a short scolding for ignoring my wife's advice, I reluctantly went to the doctor for testing. Days later, I learned that I had a malignant cancer. Because of its close proximity to lymph nodes and my brain, the doctor noted that a few more weeks delay would almost certainly have cost me my life.

Melanoma is not exactly rare. The American Cancer Society estimates that about 51,400 new cases are reported each year, and around 8,000 deaths. In almost every case, the cancer was caused by excessive exposure to sunlight, and was entirely preventable by use of sunscreen lotions. People with light hair and skin colors are particularly at risk.

Even if cancer occurs, early detection can prove to be the key to successful treatment. Self-examination, particularly of moles, can prove most effective. Moles should be looked at using what's known as the "ABCD Method."

1. Asymmetry. If one half of the mole fails to mirror the other half, this is a strong indication that the mole may contain cancerous cells.

2. Border Irregularity. The edges of the mole are notched or appear ragged.

3. Color. The color of the mole lacks uniformity. There may be varying shades of tan, brown or black. There may also be patches of red, white or blue.

4. Diameter. Any mole that is wider than six millimeters may indicate trouble.

Two years and two surgeries after my cancer was discovered, I am now cancer-free. I was very lucky to have caught it in time. Now I routinely use sunscreens and have found that my snow-white legs can pedal a bike just as well as tan ones - and in my case, for a lot longer. Keep wearing your helmet and your eyeglasses, but remember - not all of the hazards a cyclist encounters are on the road or trail.

For more information, contact the Skin Cancer Foundation at www.skincancer.org