Feature Story

Health Center Today, September 3, 2009

South Park Inn 5k Road Race Saturday September 12; Includes Free Skin Cancer Screenings

By Chris DeFrancesco

The South Park Inn Dermatology Clinic is offering free melanoma and skin cancer screenings as part of the South Park 5k Road Race , Saturday, Sept. 12.

The South Park Inn Medical Clinic serves Hartford’s homeless population and is run by UConn medical students under the supervision of licensed physicians. The South Park 5k Road Race and Fitness Walk is the clinic’s annual fundraiser. Registration starts at 7 a.m. and the race starts at 9 a.m. from Dowling North. Entry fee is $20 on race day, or $15 for those who preregister, either in the Food Court weekdays from noon to 1 p.m. or on the South Park 5K Road Race and Fitness Walk home page.

UConn Health Center dermatologists will provide skin cancer screenings from 7 a.m. to noon at the Dowling North Building. They also will teach patients how to detect melanoma when it’s in its earliest, most treatable stage. Everyone who gets screened will receive a free sun protection kit.

The free screenings are part of a national campaign to encourage early detection and teach prevention of skin cancer. More than a million new cases of skin cancer will be diagnosed in the United States this year, according to the American Academy of Dermatology. Melanoma is the most deadly form of skin cancer.

For more information about the melanoma screenings, contact Jessica Luis at 845-742-5872. For more information about the South Park 5k Road Race and Fitness Walk, e-mail Saachi Kumar or Taneisha Wilson, or visit the event home page.

To get to the Dowling North Building: Entering the UConn Health Center campus from Route 4, turn right at the first stop sign, then turn right at the next stop sign. Visit the Maps and Directions page for directions to the Health Center.