Dose-response association found between indoor tanning and SCC risk among women
MONDAY, Oct. 7, 2019 (HealthDay News) — There is a dose-response association between indoor tanning and risk for cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma in women, according to a study published online Oct. 2 in JAMA Dermatology.
Simon Lergenmuller, from the University of Oslo in Norway, and colleagues investigated a dose-response association between lifetime indoor tanning and risk for cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) among 159,419 women born from 1927 to 1963 who participated in the Norwegian Women and Cancer study (1991 with follow-up through 2015). Questionnaires were completed at baseline and every five to seven years.
The researchers found that during a mean follow-up of 16.5 years, 597 women were diagnosed with SCC. With increasing cumulative number of indoor tanning sessions, the risk for SCC increased. For highest use versus never use, the adjusted hazard ratio (HR) was 1.83. There was a significantly higher risk for SCC among women with ≤10 years of use (HR, 1.41) and >10 years of use (HR, 1.43) as well as among women aged ≥30 years at initiation (HR, 1.36) and <30 years at initiation (HR, 1.51) compared with never users.
“Avoidance of indoor tanning may help prevent not only melanoma but also SCC, and our results support the development of policies that regulate indoor tanning,” the authors write.
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