Melanoma, skin cancer risk increased in gay, bisexual men due to frequent tanning bed use: study

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Indoor tanning remains the highest contributing factor for melanoma skin cancer among gay and bisexual men, according to a new study.

The findings published in the JAMA Dermatology states reveals that tanning beds are popular among gay and bisexual men, thereby increasing their risk for skin cancer.

"One likely cause of more skin cancer among gay and bisexual men is greater exposure to ultraviolet radiation caused by indoor tanning," said Dr. Sarah Arron, lead author of the study and professor of dermatology at UC San Francisco, via EurekAlert. "Many people, especially younger people, associate tanning with health and attractiveness, and unfortunately, that myth has serious consequences."

For the research, Dr. Arron and colleagues looked at data from nearly 193,000 men and women, with more than 60,000 in California and more than 125,000 from a national survey including the 2001, 2003, 2005 and 2009 California Health Interview Surveys by the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research and the 2013 Adult National Health Interview Survey conducted by the National Center for Health Statistics.

"Overall, the rate of indoor tanning among these men is between three to six times greater than it is among heterosexual men," said Dr. Matthew Mansh, co-author from the San Francisco's California Pacific Medical Center, via a report by WebMD. "Gay and bisexual men also have about twice the rate of skin cancer compared with heterosexual men, both in terms of melanoma and non-melanoma."

The researchers found that gay and bisexual men who engage in indoor tanning are six times more at risk than their heterosexual counterparts. Meanwhile, the risk was only half in gay or bisexual women compared to the straight ones. Furthermore, the trend is also popular with white women. More than 25 percent of young white women between the ages of 17 and 22 go to tanning salons and approximately a fifth of white women in their early 30s as well. The report added that 400,000 Americans develop skin cancer yearly due to indoor tanning.

While there aren't many studies attributed to use of tanning beds to gay men and women, editorial author Aaron Blashill found the study to be important.

"There currently aren't any known public health interventions targeting tanning or skin cancer among these sexual minorities," Blashill said, via US News. "So, one major implication from this study is that it will hopefully encourage researchers to further study this population to better understand what are the factors that are placing sexual minority men at risk for skin cancer."

He added that once risk factors are identified for these groups, skin cancer prevention programs can be updated to be successfully implemented.