The use of sunbeds increases the risk of developing the most dangerous malignant skin cancer, i.e. melanoma, threefold, according to the American research published in the online edition of the Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention journal.
Melanoma is the most dangerous of all malignant skin cancers – although it accounts for only a few percent of all cancers in this group, it accounts for 75 percent. deaths because of them. It is not classified as cancer as it is derived from skin pigment cells (melanocytes) and not epithelial cells.
In the last 20 years, the number of melanoma cases in the world and in Poland has tripled. Every year, 2 thousand people are detected in our country. new cases of this cancer, and at the same time 1 thousand. people die because of it.
The increase in the incidence of melanoma may be the result of the fact that many years ago little was said about the prevention of sunburn, and as you know, UV radiation is one of the most important risk factors for this disease.
The latest research by scientists from the University of Minnesota and several other US research centers shows that the popularity of tanning beds is also responsible for these disturbing statistics, regardless of whether they emit UVB or UVA.
The research covered almost 2.3 thousand. people, of which more than half were patients with melanoma diagnosed at the age of 25-59.
It turned out that people using tanning beds – regardless of the type of UV radiation emitted by them – were on average 74 percent. more likely to develop melanoma than those who did not use them at all.
Researchers have also shown for the first time that the risk of developing melanoma is more related to the number of hours spent in the solarium than to the age at which we start visiting it. The risk increased with the frequency of visits, regardless of age, gender or type of tanning bed, the researcher emphasizes.
For the most die-hard tanning enthusiasts, the risk of melanoma increased by 150-200%. This group includes people who have visited them for over 10 years or spent more than 50 hours there, or have participated in over 100 tanning sessions.
The increased risk of melanoma affected users of all tanning beds, regardless of the type of UV rays they emit. For those who used UVB-emitting devices, the risk increased by 200%, and in the case of UVA-emitting beds – by over 300%.
We have observed that it doesn’t matter what type of tanning beds we use; in other words – there are no safe tanning beds, comments Dr. DeAnn Lazovich, who leads the study. As the epidemiologist emphasizes, the analysis also took into account the exposure of patients to solar radiation.
I hope this work will help speed up the Food and Drug Administration’s decision to regulate sunbed owners, comments Dr. Allan Halpern, director of the department of dermatology at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York, who was not involved in the study.
It is also very important to educate the public about the risk factors of developing melanoma and to encourage the protection of the skin against excess UV rays. Interestingly, the latest American research published in the Archives of Dermatology shows that in order to discourage young women from regular use of tanning beds, it is better to scare them with premature wrinkles than with melanoma.
Doctors also remind you that it is worth remembering to regularly check the moles on the skin and report any disturbing changes to a dermatologist. Melanoma diagnosed early is curable to a large extent, but there is still no effective treatment methods in patients whose cancer has metastasized.
At the next annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), June 4-8 in Chicago, scientists will present the latest results on the promising immunotherapy of cutaneous melanoma at one of the plenary sessions. It is a method of increasing the effectiveness of the immune system in the fight against melanoma with the help of a new drug – ipilimumab (PAP).