PSYCHOLOGICAL REACTIONS IN PUBLIC MELANOMA SCREENING

Participants in public screening for malignant melanoma (n = 190) completed a questionnaire containing items regarding cognitive and emotional responses to skin examination on two occasions, before screening and 7 months later. The results suggest subjective susceptibility to melanoma in participants in public screening, especially in women. No increase in psychosomatic problems, anxiety or depressive symptoms or signs of ''false security'' were seen as an effect of the screening, neither in the total sample nor in those who at the screening were recommended further medical procedures.