Study claims indoor tanning-related skin cancers contribute significantly to early deaths

A new study published in the Journal of Cancer Policy has examined the prevalence of indoor tanning-related skin cancers in the US, and calculated the costs of these diseases.

The study carried out by Dr Hugh Waters, and colleagues from the University of North Carolina, estimated that in 2015 there were 263,600 cases of skin cancer that could be attributed to indoor tanning. These cases cost US $343.1m (£275.34m) in medical costs in 2015, causing a total economic loss of $127bn (£101.92bn) over the lifetime of the people affected. The authors conclude that effective policies and strategies are needed to reduce the use of tanning devices, in order to mitigate their significant health and financial impacts.

“Skin cancer is the most common cancer in the US and its incidence is increasing, due in part to the increase in the use of tanning devices,” said Dr Waters. “We know these devices have significant health and financial impacts, and with this study we wanted to establish these impacts clearly to support efforts to reduce their use, especially among younger people.”

The researchers focused on three types of skin cancer: cutaneous melanoma, basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma. They identified the total number of cases in the US in 2015 and worked out how many of these cases were likely due to the use of tanning devices, by using data on prevalence of use of tanning devices and previously published estimates of relative risk – the likelihood of having the disease for people who use tanning devices compared to people who don’t.

There were 9,000 cases of melanoma, 86,600 cases of squamous cell carcinoma and 168,000 cases of basal cell carcinoma that could be attributed to the use of tanning devices.