An Alarming Growth
Dramatic Rise in Skin Cancer, Particularly for Young Women
Seriously, ladies, step away from the baby oil. The Mayo Clinic recently reported an alarming increase in the number of people getting skin cancer, with the most dramatic rise occurring among women in their 20s and 30s.
Researchers compared the medical records of individuals ages 18 to 39 who received a first-time diagnoses of melanoma between 1970 and 2009. They found the incidence of melanoma increased eightfold for young women, and fourfold for males. The lifetime risk of melanoma is higher for males, but the opposite is true for young people, the study’s lead investigator, Jerry Brewer, M.D., explained. Well, girls’ clothing does seem to be getting smaller and smaller by the minute, so that makes sense.
The researchers think that increased use of indoor tanning beds, which we young women seem to love, is to blame. Another recent study demonstrated that individuals who frequently use tanning beds have a 74 percent greater likelihood of developing melanoma. The researchers emphasized that more dramatic steps need to be taken to educate young women about tanning beds’ carcinogenic effects.
Other significant contributing factors to melanoma development include UV exposure and childhood sunburns. Remember all those times you would immediately wipe off all the Coppertone your mom put on you? Well, payback’s a real bitch.
On a more fortunate note, the researchers also concluded that mortality rates from melanoma have declined, reflecting that people today are more aware that they need to seek medical care early on, when they first notice changes in their skin.
Researchers compared the medical records of individuals ages 18 to 39 who received a first-time diagnoses of melanoma between 1970 and 2009. They found the incidence of melanoma increased eightfold for young women, and fourfold for males. The lifetime risk of melanoma is higher for males, but the opposite is true for young people, the study’s lead investigator, Jerry Brewer, M.D., explained. Well, girls’ clothing does seem to be getting smaller and smaller by the minute, so that makes sense.
The researchers think that increased use of indoor tanning beds, which we young women seem to love, is to blame. Another recent study demonstrated that individuals who frequently use tanning beds have a 74 percent greater likelihood of developing melanoma. The researchers emphasized that more dramatic steps need to be taken to educate young women about tanning beds’ carcinogenic effects.
Other significant contributing factors to melanoma development include UV exposure and childhood sunburns. Remember all those times you would immediately wipe off all the Coppertone your mom put on you? Well, payback’s a real bitch.
On a more fortunate note, the researchers also concluded that mortality rates from melanoma have declined, reflecting that people today are more aware that they need to seek medical care early on, when they first notice changes in their skin.
We say either embrace your paste (it seems to be working out pretty well for Cate Blanchett) or take a tour of your drugstore’s self tanner aisle. Frankly, tanning beds make you smell like you’ve been hanging out in a trailer anyway, so get out of there and save a life (like yours).
Source: Mayo Clinic (2012). Dramatic Rise in Skin Cancer in Young Adults. ScienceDaily. Retrieved from http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120402093158.htm
More On ChickRx:
Published 6/11/2012
Comments