Skin Cancer - Agenda

The trouble with me is that it is hard to pinpoint exactly what some of my passions and concerns are in life. I like to believe that I am a well rounded person so there really isn't one particular interest the out weighs the others. I got to thinking about some issues that have affected not me per say but other family members. One common occurrence that I found was skin cancer. I have a family history with people at risk of skin cancer. Of all the cases in the family, none have ever been fatal or resulted in death. It is something that we are constantly watching and keeping track of since we are at risk.

This is of particular interest to me because many people are constantly putting themselves at risk every day. From people that work outside everyday without the use of sunscreen to those that hit the tanning bed every evening are among those that are taking these unnecessary risks. There are different types of skin cancers and everyone is at risk. There are misconceptions that only people with certain skin tones and pigments are the ones who need to take care. I think people need to understand what they are doing to themselves so they don't have to live with regrets later in their lives.

The type of message that I would like to get across is one of warning. I would like it to be nicer than some of the scare tactics other organizations use today. Possibly one that everyone could relate to. Since the primary cause of skin cancer is skin that is regularly exposed to sunlight or other ultraviolet radiation, my message would be primarily that. I was thinking of a game that was frogger-esque where the object of the game would be to get from point A to B while staying out of the sun. This would mean having to stay in the shadows of buildings, clouds, umbrellas, etc while being able to acquire power up items like a sun hat, sunscreen, etc. The object would be to keep your risk factor down as much as possible while completing some errands. I think this is a non-in-your-face approach but still carries an important message while the player is having fun.

Overall I think this is an important subject that has a lot of potential in being fun while making the game, playing the game, and distributing a valuable message to all who play it.