The 2012 edition of The Skin Cancer Foundation Journal features medically reviewed, reader-friendly articles such as tanning, the increasing incidence of skin cancer diagnoses among young women, & the prevalence of melanoma among white males over 50.
which some people would be assigned to a placebo group. This means they would be asked to apply a product that didn't actually contain any sunscreen and the results could then be compared with those of people who had been asked to apply sunscreen. But with so much cancer-causing UV radiation in Australia, we couldn't give the control group here a placebo — it would have been too dangerous in the short-term with potential sunburns. Also, sub- jects in a "blinded" controlled trial do not know to which group they are assigned. But in a high UV radiation area such as ours in the north half of Australia, after they'd been out in the sun once or twice, our subjects would know whether or not they were really using sunscreen. The solution was to just let those in the control group continue their regular sun protection habits, so obviously, there was some discretionary protection in our control
group, but the best protection was seen in the active intervention group.
Q: What follow-up research is ongoing or needs to be done to reinforce these findings? A: I'm not planning to do another simi- lar trial, and I do not know of anyone else who might be — unfortunately there aren't the resources. Going in another, but related, direction, I'd like to see a trial in children to assess the effects of sunscreen use in preventing mole development, since moles are associated with a heightened risk for melanoma.
Q: What are your suggestions for consumers about sunscreen use? A: In Australia, we put sunscreen on all exposed skin. If you have sun- protective clothing [such as clothing with an ultraviolet protection factor, or UPF, of 30+], there is no need to wear
sunscreen under your clothes. But the clothing needs to cover those body parts to which you haven't applied any sunscreen. Other supplementary techniques include sun avoidance or seeking proper shade in high sun exposure
settings. And certainly
in areas with high year-round sun exposure like Queensland, we would like people to use sunscreen morning and afternoon, all year long!
ADELE C. GREEN, MD, is one of the world's most esteemed authorities on the epidemiology and prevention of cancers of the skin. Head of the Cancer and Population Studies Group at the Queensland Institute of Medical Research in Brisbane, Australia, she has served on many national and international research commit- tees and currently sits on the International Commission on Non-Ionising Radiation Protection; she is a member of its Epidemiology Standing Committee. Dr. Green has published over 300 peer-reviewed research articles, most of them in the field of cancer epidemiology.
The study was the first to provide strong direct evidence that sunscreen helps prevent melanoma
EDITOR'S NOTE The Skin Cancer Foundation advises everyone to practice a comprehensive sun protec- tion program that includes seeking the shade between 10 AM and 4 PM, when the sun's rays are most intense; wearing sun-protective clothing, including long pants, long-sleeved shirts, a wide-brimmed hat and UV-blocking sunglasses; and using a broad spectrum (UVA/UVB) sun- screen with an SPF of 15 or higher every day. For extended outdoor activity, use a water-resistant, broad spectrum sunscreen with an SPF of 30 or higher.
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