The Issue

SKIN CANCER FACTS

1. Skin cancer is a growing epidemic in the US with more than 1 million new cases diagnosed each year. American Cancer Society
2. About 10,000 Americans die each year from skin cancer. American Cancer Society
3. The most deadly form of skin cancer, melanoma, has tripled among Caucasians since 1980. American Cancer Society
4. One in 5 Americans and one in 3 Caucasians will develop skin cancer in the course of a lifetime.
5. According to Medicare statistics, the five most costly cancers to treat are skin, lung and bronchus, prostate, colon and rectum, and breast. While non-melanoma skin cancer was 11 to 19 times less costly to treat per affected patient than the other types of cancer listed, it was far more prevalent. Center for Dermatology Research
6. A person's risk for skin cancer doubles if he or she has had five or more sunburns.
7. More than 90 percent of all skin cancers are caused by sun exposure, yet fewer than 33 percent of adults, adolescents, and children routinely use sun protection.
8. Most skin cancer is caused by prolonged exposure to the ultraviolet rays from the sun, known as UV radiation. This invisible radiation is divided between UVB waves which affect the top layers of the skin and are the chief cause of sunburn and skin cancer, and UVA rays which penetrate the skin more deeply and cause pre-mature aging and also skin cancer.

SUNSCREENS (and SKIN CANCER)

1. Current US sunscreen standards set by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) protect Americans sufficiently from sunburn, but not adequately from all effects of UV radiation. This is because US sunscreen standards do not yet contain specific requirements for protection against the harmful UVA radiation that dermatologists agree can cause premature aging and also skin cancer.
2. By their very nature, US sunscreen standards provide a false sense of security to Americans, since their sunscreen is protecting successfully against sunburn, but not adequately against cancer. Consumers may wrongly believe that their sunscreen is sufficiently protecting them and therefore stay in the sun longer.
3. Sunscreens that adequately protect consumers from both UVA and UVB radiation are known as broad-spectrum sunscreens. These products have a UVA Protection Factor (UVA-PF) to Sun Protection Factor (SPF) ratio of greater than 1 to 3.
4. The Food and Drug Administration should adopt more comprehensive broad-spectrum sunscreen standards in order to better protect Americans from skin cancer and pre-mature aging.

SUNSCREENS and UVA/BROAD-SPECTRUM STANDARD

1. The Food and Drug Administration should also ensure that sunscreens are correctly and appropriately labeled. Only products that meet strict testing criteria should be allowed to be labeled as "broad-spectrum".
2. Europe has adopted a strong broad-spectrum sunscreen standard. US consumers would greatly benefit if the FDA harmonized the US sunscreen standard with Europe's.
3. The technology and ingredients exist that are needed to formulate robust broad-spectrum sunscreens. It is even possible to formulate products that protect equally against both UVA and UVB rays. (SPF to UVA-PF ratio of 1 to 1).