Skin Cancer Risks Among Young Adults

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Cancer Institute, young adults are engaging in behaviors that can increase the risk of getting skin cancer.

Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the United States and treatments cost Americans as much as $1.7 billion each year.

Melanoma is the deadliest form of skin cancer but both melanoma and non-melanoma skin cancers can cause scars and reduce a patients’ quality of life.

The National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), from 2010, asked adults in the U.S. about a number of things, such as indoor tanning habits, their sun protective behaviors and the number of sunburns they acquired in the past year.

There were two surveys; one looked at adults from ages 18-29 about sun protective behaviors and sunburns while the second one looked at adults aged 18 and older dealing with indoor tanning devices.

For those 18-29 surveyed, it was found that experiencing one or more sunburns in the past year was common with non-Hispanic whites with 66 percent and least common among non-Hispanic blacks by 11 percent.

It was also found that only 37 percent of women use sunscreen and 33 percent of men wear long clothing down to their ankles to protect them from the sun.

In the study that surveyed those aged 18 and older dealing with indoor tanning devices, 32 percent of non-Hispanic white women were more likely to use those devices. Those who reported using the indoor tanning device also reported an average of 28 tanning sessions in the past year.

Among the non-Hispanic white adults that were surveyed, 40 percent of men and 58 percent of women used one 10 times or more in the past year.

The results from the survey show high-risk behaviors for skin cancer among young adults in the United States.

Snyder and Wenner, P.C.

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