How many melanomas might be prevented if more people applied sunscreen regularly?

Abstract

Summary Background Ultraviolet radiation causes cutaneous melanoma. Sunscreen prevents sunburn and protects skin cells against mutations. High‐quality epidemiological studies suggest regular sunscreen use prevents melanoma. Objectives To calculate the potential impact fraction (PIF) for melanoma in the U.S.A. and Australia assuming a range of different intervention scenarios intended to increase sunscreen use. Methods We calculated the PIF, the proportional difference between the observed number of melanomas arising under prevailing levels of sunscreen use compared with the number expected under counterfactual scenarios. We used published melanoma incidence projections for Australia and the white population in the U.S.A. from 2012 through to 2031 as the baseline condition, with estimates for protective effects of ‘regular sunscreen use’ from the literature. Sunscreen prevalence was sourced from national or state surveys. Results Under a plausible public health intervention scenario comprising incremental increases in sunscreen prevalence over a 10‐year implementation programme, we estimated that cumulatively to 2031, 231 053 fewer melanomas would arise in the U.S. white population (PIF 11%) and 28 071 fewer melanomas would arise in Australia (PIF 10%). Under the theoretical maximum model of sunscreen use, almost 797 000 (PIF 38%) and approximately 96 000 (PIF 34%) melanomas would be prevented in the U.S.A. and Australia, respectively between 2012 and 2031. A sensitivity analysis using weaker effect estimates resulted in more conservative PIF estimates. Conclusions Overall, interventions to increase use of sunscreen would result in moderate reductions in melanoma incidence, assuming no compensatory overexposure to the sun. Countries with a high incidence of melanoma should monitor levels of sunscreen use in the community.

Collodion babies: A 15-year retrospective multicenter study in The Netherlands—Evaluation of severity scores to predict the underlying disease

“…A 2018 study modeling a 5% yearly increase in prevalence of sunscreen use from 2012 to 2022 estimated that cumulatively to 2031, 231,053 fewer melanomas would be diagnosed in the US white population; this illustrates the conceivable benefit from large-scale initiatives such as community dispenser programs. 5 Study limitations include data that did not comprise 2015 and 2016 requisitions and were limited to a single organization; thus, the total number of dispensers and amount of sunscreen used nationwide are higher. Additionally, sunscreen distributed serves as a surrogate measure for use and does not necessarily indicate exact usage patterns.…”

Art of prevention: The importance of melanoma surveillance

“…What we can gather from these data is that sunscreen use is multifactorial, and patients should be educated on the proper use of sunscreen to include use of an SPF of at least 15 and reapplication once within 1 hour of application ( Petersen and Wulf, 2014 ). Because most patients do not apply sunscreen in accordance with recommendations, supplementary prevention via UV-protective clothing may be beneficial to recommend ( Olsen et al, 2018 , Vasicek et al, 2018 ).…”

Sun-safe behaviours, personal risk, level of concern, and knowledge about cutaneous melanoma in Italy: time for social marketing?

“…Cutaneous melanoma is the most aggressive of all skin tumours [ 5 , 7 ] but also one of the most preventable cancers [ 9 ]. Studies in both Europe and the United States have shown that the use of sunscreen reduces the incidence of Melanoma by up to 34-38% [ 10 , 11 ]. Given this evidence, it is important to implement appropriate preventive measures on a continued basis, and an effective solution could be offered by social marketing [ 12-15 ].…”