Did You Know?
Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the United States. According to the Skin Cancer Foundation, more than 5 million nonmelanoma skin cancers were treated in over 3 million individuals in 2012. 150,000 new cases of invasive melanoma are projected to be diagnosed in the United States 2018, with nearly 10,000 people estimated to not survive melanoma that same year.
Did You Know…
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Scientific studies show that proper sun protection, including the use of sunscreen, can help reduce the risk of developing skin cancer.
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Healthcare professionals and regulatory authorities worldwide agree that sunscreen use is important to staying safe in the sun.
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Restricting the use of sunscreen ingredients limits consumers’ options for the best possible protection.
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Not all sunscreens protect against harmful UV rays. Some protect against UVB rays that cause burning, and others protect against UVA rays that cause damage like premature aging and skin cancer.
- Each year there are more new cases of skin cancer than the combined incidence of breast, prostate, lung and colon cancers.
- From 1999 to 2015, the incidence of melanoma increased by nearly 50 percent in the United States.
- Over the past three decades, more people have had skin cancer than all other cancers combined.
- One person dies every hour from melanoma, projected to nearly 10,000 deaths in 2018.
- One in five Americans will develop skin cancer in the course of a lifetime.
- Just one bad burn in childhood increases the risk of developing melanoma later in life.
- Melanoma is the number one cancer killer of women in their twenties.
- Skin cancer is most deadly for African Americans, Asians and Latinos.
- The estimated total direct cost associated with the treatment of melanoma is $3.3 billion in the United States.
- The emotional and physical costs are impossible to calculate.
- A 2012 study by the Center for Disease Control (CDC) concluded that “Given the substantial costs of treating melanoma, public health strategies should include efforts to enhance both primary prevention (reduction of ultraviolet light exposure) and secondary prevention (earlier detection) of melanoma.”
- There are currently 16 sunscreen filters that are approved by the FDA for use in sunscreens, only 9 of which are used today.
- The last time the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved a new sunscreen ingredient was in the 1990s.
- Outside of the United States, the next generation of photostable, broad-spectrum sunscreens that offer UVA and UVB protection have been approved for use.
- Since 2002, there have been eight pending sunscreen ingredient applications that are still waiting approval from the FDA.