Increased Melanoma Skin Cancer Risk Linked To Indoor Tanning

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There are people who spend several hours a day under the heat of the sun to achieve their dream of having a beautifully tanned skin. However, there are places in this world that are not blessed with the natural sunlight they need and, so, they resort to indoor tanning machines.

Most of these people do not realize the negative effect of these machines to their health, particularly their skin.

According to a report by Yahoo! News, a study suggests that tanning machines could be the reason why there is an increase of melanoma cases amongst women in the United States.

The new study has similar result to the previous research done in Australia in 2011.

The study, which was conducted at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, involved people with melanoma who are not more than 50 years of age. The team of researchers found out that those women who experienced the indoor tanning machine were six times more likely to get skin cancer.

"That almost all of the risk of melanoma related to indoor tanning was among women was surprising, as was the very strong association among the youngest women," said DeAnn Lazovich, the head researcher.

"Women under 40 who have tanned in the past may want to monitor their skin for any changes that could signal melanoma, so as to catch it as early as possible," she added.

Melanoma is said to be the deadliest form of cancer because it spreads to different parts of the body including a person's distant organs and lymph nodes. It also causes more than 9,000 deaths every year in the United States.

According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), using these indoor tanning machines expose people to two types of dangerous UV rays, UVB and UVA. These UV rays can damage skin layers that can certainly lead to cancer.

Other risks of indoor tanning also include changes in the skin texture, premature skin aging such as age spots and wrinkles. Also, it can cause blindness due to various eye diseases.

Gery P. Guy, Jr. of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention agrees with the result of the study stating previous evidence that have linked indoor tanning machines to the deadly disease.

"The study by Dr. Lazovich and her colleagues adds to an already large and growing body of evidence supporting the strong association between indoor tanning and melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer," Guy said.