University of Oslo, Faculty of Medicine
Melanoma is the most dangerous type of skin cancer with the
strongest increase in incidence in the last decade, and the incidence rates
have never been as high as in 2014 (www.kreftregisteret.no).
Now there are about 2,000 new cases of melanoma each year in
Norway.
The World Health Organization based International Agency for Research
on Cancer has classified UV-emitting tanning devices as "carcinogenic to
humans" in 2009 (www.iarc.fr).
New
evidence on the damaging effect of sunbeds
The study followed 141,000 Norwegian women for the average of 14
years.
Women who had 30 or more indoor tanning sessions were at 32%
increased risk of melanoma compared to never-users.
In addition, women who started indoor tanning before age 30 were
on average 2 years younger at melanoma diagnosis than never-users.
These associations remained significant after controlling for
age, birth-cohort, ambient UV of residence, hair color, skin color, and
cumulative number of sunburns and sunbathing vacations.
Public
health importance
Modern sunbeds emit six times more UVA and twice as much UVB as
Oslo summer sun.
The findings of this study have important implications for
public health, as it shows that sunbed use increases the burden of melanoma in
societies by both increasing the number of patients and decreasing the age at
diagnosis.
