Four patients who were seen by dermatologists on Monday are suspected to suffer from a form of skin cancer. "We found suspicious lesions which will need to be removed in four patients," Lawrence Scerri, the head of Boffa Hospital's Dermatology Department, said.

About 80 patients were seen by the department's skin doctors during a symbolic event to mark Melanoma Monday. Melanoma is the most deadly form of skin cancer. If caught early, melanoma can be treated by surgically removing the affected part of the skin, making early diagnosis imperative throughout the year.

The annual incidence of melanoma has almost doubled between 1993 and 2008, rising from 11.6 cases to 22.5 cases per year among women and increasing from 9.4 to 16.3 annual cases in men. There has also been an increase in mortality, up from an average of 4.5 annual cases between 1993 and 2000 to six cases between 2001 and 2008.

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