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Indoor tanning likely factor in melanoma diagnosis among younger women
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Younger women who tanned indoors experienced up to a 6-fold likelihood of developing melanoma, which was particularly true for women in their 20s, according to study results recently published in JAMA Dermatology.
Researchers in Minnesota conducted a population-based case control study of 681 patients (68.3% women) diagnosed with melanoma between 2004 and 2007, and 654 controls patients (68.2% women), aged 25 to 49 years.
Indoor tanning was most common among women aged younger than 40 in the case group. The median age at indoor tanning initiation was 16 years for women younger than 40 years at diagnosis or reference age, compared with 25 years for women 40 years and older (P < .001).
Women younger than 40 reported more frequent sessions overall, than women older than 40 (median number of sessions 100 vs. 40, P < .001), but especially within the case group (median 120 vs. 76 sessions, P = .04). Women younger than 30 years were six times more likely to be in the case group if they tanned indoors (crude OR= 6.0; 95% CI, 1.3-28.5).”
Young women, aged 30 to 49 years had significantly elevated odds ratios (adjusted OR = 3.5; 95% CI, 1.2-9.7 for women aged 30-39 years; adjusted OR=2.3; 95% CI, 1.4-3.6 for women 40-49 years). There was a dose response observed for women, regardless of age.
Results for men by age were inconsistent.
Melanomas arising on the trunk of women had the strongest odds ratio for indoor tanning by anatomic site (adjusted OR = 3.7; 95% CI, 1.9-7.2).
“Younger women who tanned indoor experienced a 2.3- to 6-fold increase in the likelihood of developing melanoma; this relations was particularly evident among women in their 20s,” the researchers wrote. “We were not able to observe similar associations among younger men, likely because of poor statistical power to detect them given that fewer men are diagnosed as having melanoma at younger ages, and men are less frequent users of indoor tanning compared with women.”
“Our results indicate that [current] efforts need to be accelerated and expanded beyond bans on minor access to indoor tanning to curb the melanoma epidemic, which seems likely to continue unabated, especially among young women, unless exposure to indoor tanning is further restricted and reduced,” the researchers concluded. – by Bruce Thiel
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.
Perspective
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Anthony Olszanski, MD
Ultraviolet (UV) radiation exposure is clearly linked to the risk for developing skin cancer, including the most deadly form of cancer, melanoma. UV radiation exposure from any form increases the risk for developing melanoma.
Melanoma is the most common cancer in women aged 25 to 32 years. However, it is not clear if the higher incidence in younger women is due to UV exposure during tanning bed use, compared with younger men.
Lazovich and colleagues examined whether the development of melanoma in younger women, compared with the development in younger men, could be linked to indoor tanning habits. Researchers compared data derived from 681 men and women aged younger than 50 years who developed melanoma, to data from 654 controls who did not have this diagnosis. In this study, researchers found that women tanning indoors had a higher likelihood of developing melanoma compared with men. This was most striking in the younger-than-30 age group, where these women were six times more likely to develop melanoma compared with the control group.
This finding is important. Young women are disproportionally diagnosed with melanoma, and this study supports the higher use of indoor tanning as a contributing factor in this demographic. Further restrictions on the use of indoor tanning equipment and efforts at educating the public, especially focused on those most at risk, are imperative.
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