by Hank Dart We’ve written a great deal in CNiC over the years on the dangers of indoor tanning, with one primary theme being the allure it has to young people, especially teenage girls.  It even seems to border on an addiction of sorts, as some research suggests. With UV exposure in youth and young […]

Photo: Flickr/whatshername, Creative Commons Lic. There was a nice piece in the New York Times this weekend on the risks of indoor tanning, particularly in youth. Focussing on the personal experiences of a handful of young women and their  parents, it does a very good job highlighting the well-established risks of skin cancer and deadly melanoma, the […]

Photo: Flickr/whatshername A new study out this week further confirms the dangers of indoor tanning, finding that use of tanning beds and other UV tanning devices is strongly linked to developing skin cancer early in life. Published early online in the medical journal Pediatrics, the study compared the history of indoor tanning in a group […]

Can preteen kids tan indoors?  The surprising answer in Missouri is most often “yes,” found a new study that surveyed indoor tanning facilities in the state (study; media release).  This infographic highlights that and other disturbing findings that paint an unattractive picture in one of 17 states nationwide that don’t regulate the practice of indoor […]

A recent article in MedPage Today highlighted the birth of a new tanning salon industry-sponsored group that has the sole intent of refuting well-established and peer-reviewed science showing the dangers of tanning bed use. The new group – the American Suntanning Association (ASA) – which, intentionally or not, seemed to receive cozy treatment in the article, has […]

We’ve dedicated a number of posts over the past year on the policy and health pitfalls of indoor tanning – from the potential benefits of the “tanning tax” (post) to surprisingly high rates of tanning by some youth (post).  Now comes a fascinating, if not perfectly surprising, little analysis on the influence parents can have […]

In the June issue of the journal Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, University of Minnesota researcher DeAnn Lazovich and colleagues published a study further confirming the dangers of indoor tanning, finding significant increases in the risk of melanoma linked to regular tanning bed use (link).  She summarizes her findings and take-home messages in this nice […]

A new study in this month’s Archives of Dermatology suggests that indoor tanning can be addicting in young adults (study) (1).  While the study was relatively small, with just over 400 participants surveyed, the results seem to bolster the need for moves toward greater regulation of the indoor tanning industry, especially through policies that curtail […]

A new study published online last week in the British Medical Journal on tanning bed use by youth in the United Kingdom has raised concerns well beyond its shores (full study) (1).     The study surveyed over 9,000 children aged 11 -17 in England, Wales, and Scotland and found that 6 percent of those […]

As we’ve written about before on Cancer News in Context, good evidence points to the important role that behaviors in youth and young adulthood can have on cancer risk later in life. Health habits started in youth not only have a longer time to impact risk, but they can also have unique and important interactions with the […]

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) reported today in the journal, JAMA, that there is not enough evidence to recommend that adults get screened for skin cancer. Though some professional medical organizations recommend physician-performed visual checks for skin cancer — and many physicians carry them out — the USPSTF found no solid evidence that […]

It’s been another big year of cancer prevention news, and it started with a real splash way back in January with a headline-grabbing study in Science attributing most cases of cancer to simple “bad luck.” Not surprisingly, we disagreed with that conclusion, and our post responding to the study – and the stories it generated […]

Cancer News in Context‘s own Graham Colditz received the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO)–American Cancer Society Award today at the ASCO Annual Meeting in Chicago (more info).  The award honors contributions to cancer prevention and control. In his associated lecture, Colditz will focus on the need to place a higher priority on prevention if […]

With spring in the air and the long sunny days of summer not too far off, the American Academy of Pediatrics has released a new policy statement on the hazards of UV radiation exposure in children and adolescents.  The statement, published in the journal Pediatrics (link), refreshes and reinforces what many of us know – […]

As we turn to summer, cookouts, and more time in the sun, a burning question is whether sunscreen prevents skin cancer. Much media attention has focused on the slow progress made by the FDA to bring US regulations into line with other countries to gain up to date benefits of sunscreen formulation and consumer labeling […]

  Coverage of the President’s Cancer Panel report this week draws attention to environmental contaminants as a potential cause of cancer (report). While this is an area of much public interest and certainly an important part of comprehensive health policy, it is a strange focus for a report that is meant to influence the nation’s […]

In results widely reported this week, a new study has found strong links between the drinking behavior of young women and adolescent girls and their later risk of developing benign breast disease, a marker of future risk for breast cancer (study link) (1). The study, published early online in the journal Pediatrics, surveyed close to […]