Going out to get a tan in Victoria could soon feel a lot like heading to the bar if a proposal to ban underage patrons from tanning salons is passed into law.

The Capital Regional District is considering a bylaw that would ban people under 18 from using tanning beds, and would require identification from anyone who appears under 25.

The bylaw is a response to growing concerns in recent years that tanning among young people significantly increases the risk of skin cancer.

Dr. Richard Stanwick, the chief medical health officer for the Vancouver Island Health Authority, says governments need to step in to protect young people from the damaging artificial rays of tanning beds. [Read more...]

Skin cancer rates among younger Canadians are rising just as the number of skin specialists available is set to decline.

Canadians born in the 1990s are two to three times more likely to get skin cancer in their lifetime than those born in the 1960s, says the Canadian Dermatology Association, which is holding its annual meeting in Vancouver.

The rate for those born in the 1990s is one in six, compared with one in 20 for the older group, it says.

An estimated 75,000 Canadians will be diagnosed with non-malignant skin cancer this year, the association says. [Read more...]

Melanoma is the most dangerous type of skin cancer. It often starts out as a coloured mole or spot, but can spread fast to surrounding skin and other organs. Melanomas make up only one or two per cent of all skin cancers, but they are the type most likely to be fatal.

The skin’s melanocytes (cells that determine skin colour) produce a pigment called melanin that gives skin its colour and protects it from sun damage. When skin is exposed to the sun, it produces more pigment and darkens. Melanocytes often cluster together and form moles. Most moles are benign, but some become malignant melanomas.

Are there different forms of the disease?

There are four types of melanomas, depending on their location, shape, and whether they grow outward or downward into the skin.

• Superficial, spreading or flat: Grows outwards at first and forms an irregular pattern on the skin, with an uneven colour.
• Nodular: Is lumpy and often a blue-black colour. It may grow faster and spread downwards, into the skin.
• Acral melanomas: Develop on the palms of the hand, soles of the feet or the nailbeds.
• Lentigo maligna: Usually develops on the faces of elderly people. [Read more...]

Tanning beds and ultraviolet radiation cause cancer and have been moved up to the highest risk category by international cancer experts.

The new classification means tanning beds and UV definitely cause cancer in humans, just as tobacco smoke, the hepatitis B virus and mustard gas do.

The International Agency for Cancer Research or IARC, the World Health Organization’s cancer wing in Lyon, France, updated the level based on research published online Wednesday in the medical journal Lancet Oncology.

“People need to be reminded of the risks of sunbeds,” said Vincent Cogliano, one of the study’s authors. “We hope the prevailing culture will change so teens don’t think they need to use sunbeds to get a tan.” [Read more...]

Students at Kensington High School in P.E.I. are challenging their classmates to avoid tanning for this year’s prom.

‘If you start tanning younger than the age of 30, you increase your chances of getting skin cancer by 75 per cent.’ —Student Kathleen Murphy

Getting tanned shoulders for the prom dress is traditionally part of the graduation-class rite of passage on P.E.I., but growing awareness of skin cancer prompted two students, Kathleen Murphy and Chelsea Christensen, at the central Island school to launch a campaign against the practice. [Read more...]

The Medical Society of P.E.I. and the Canadian Cancer Society are still waiting for the province to move on legislation for tanning beds, and they say guidelines aren’t enough.

‘Don’t put all this on the salon owners. Don’t blame them.’— Kathy Tweel, salon owner

P.E.I. has the highest rate of melanoma in the country, and in July 2009 the World Health Organization published a report placing tanning beds in the same category as tobacco for cancer risk.

That report prompted a call for legislation from the P.E.I. division of the Canadian Cancer Society. It wanted the use of tanning beds by people under 18 banned. [Read more...]