Widespread disease skin cancer: new facts and figures / prevention through controlled UV light exposure significantly reduces the risk of developing skin cancer

Neuss (ots) – Sunburn and uncontrolled sunbathing outdoors, with increased exposure to UV radiation, can increase the risk of skin cancer. Light skin types and hereditary predispositions are more at risk. Moderate and balanced sunbathing, on the other hand, not only contributes significantly to a healthy lifestyle, but also actively prevents the development of malignant melanomas in combination with vitamin D production.[1],[2] If you pay attention to the right dose of UV light to suit your skin type, you don’t have to avoid the sun or give up your summer vacation and a healthy tan.

widespread disease cancer. A diagnosis that probably represents a horror scenario for everyone. But cancer is not just cancer. For example, skin cancer is one of the types of cancer that is said to have the best chances of recovery: The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) determined in 2021 that the relative 10-year survival rates in 2018 for women with malignant melanoma of the skin in Germany 94 percent and 93 percent for men.[3] According to the RKI, skin cancer is only responsible for 1.25 percent of all cancer deaths. About 328 cases are diagnosed in 100,000 people annually. White skin cancer is found in 290 of those affected, which only rarely metastasizes and is therefore relatively harmless. In the remaining 38, the dermatologist found the more dangerous malignant melanoma. Since this skin tumor is often discovered in the early stages, the treatment is successful in most cases.[4]

Risk factors that, according to the RKI, increase the risk of developing skin cancer are, among other things, congenital or hereditary: The most important congenital risk factors include particularly large pigmented moles that are already present at birth and a light skin type. If several first-degree relatives have malignant melanoma, this can indicate an increased risk in the family due to inherited mutations. And irresponsible use of sun and UV rays can also have its downsides, because sunburn at any age increases the risk: even those who have been exposed to uncontrolled ultraviolet radiation in one of the phases of life, childhood, adolescence or adulthood, have an increased risk the so-called black getting skin cancer. This is because malignant melanoma is primarily caused by shock-like UV exposure in which the skin was unable to adapt to more intensive UV exposure, for example due to frequent summer vacations with intense solar radiation. Before going on holiday in the south, the skin should therefore slowly get used to the higher UV indices. Because the resulting calluses and tanning as well as the associated vitamin D synthesis of the skin offer immediate protection against malignant melanoma and its consequences.[5],[6]

If sun, then right. Control is important.

Dose, getting used to it slowly, and avoiding sunburn are the best ways to protect against skin cancer. Whoever demonizes the UV light radiation from the sun or solarium falls short, because if used correctly, they even protect against malignant skin cancer.

So what to do if you don’t want to do without a soothing sunbath, a light tan and a balanced vitamin D level? A safe and professional alternative to sunbathing in the open air is the use of modern solariums in tanning studios with professionally trained staff. These offer all the benefits of sunbathing but with qualified skin advice and in a controlled environment. In tanning studios, the intensity and duration of the UV exposure is adjusted individually to the respective skin type by trained staff and smart system technology. And a further advantage is the controlled visit to a solarium, as Prof. Dr. medical Jörg Spitz, chairman of the SonnenAllianz – a project of the German Foundation for Health Information and Prevention – explains: “When exposed to UV radiation, the skin produces the prohormone vitamin D.[7] In our body, the “sun hormone” fulfills important tasks in many places. Vitamin D is not only involved in bone and muscle formation, but also plays an important role in the cardiovascular system, in the immune and respiratory systems and is required for various brain functions. And an adequate vitamin D level is also recommended to prevent most types of cancer.” A last, but no less important point concerns practicality. While free time and weather often do not go together in our latitudes, the sun always shines in the studio – for example Partly into the evening hours – which ensures one of the essential prerequisites for healthy sunbathing: regularity.

Extensive further information on cancer and vitamin D can be found at https://ots.de/lEuskC

About the Sun Alliance:

In order to clarify the problems associated with a low vitamin D level and the misunderstandings surrounding the sun, the German Foundation for Health Information and Prevention, chaired by the specialist in nuclear medicine, preventive medicine, nutritional medicine and founder of the “Academy for Human Medicine”, Prof. Dr. medical Jörg Spitz founded the SonnenAllianz. The aim of the project is to promote a conscious and positive approach to the sun. Among other things, the SonnenAllianz wants to make the health-promoting aspects of the sun known and transparent to a broad public and at the same time invalidate or invalidate myths in public discussion with scientific facts.

[1] Newton-Bishop, J. A., Beswick, S., Randerson-Moor, J., Chang, Y.-M., Affleck, P., Elliott, F., … Bishop, D. T. (2009). Serum 25-Hydroxyvitamin D3 Levels Are Associated With Breslow Thickness at Presentation and Survival From Melanoma. Journal of Clinical Oncology, 27(32), 5439-5444. doi: 10.1200/jco.2009.22.1135

[2] Berwick, M., Armstrong, B., Fine, J., Kricker, A., Eberle, C., & Barnhill, R. (2005). RESPONSE: Re: Sun Exposure and Mortality From Melanoma. JNCI: Journal of the National Cancer Institute, 97(23), 1791-1791. doi: 10.1093/jnci/dji411

[3] https://www.krebsdaten.de/Krebs/DE/Content/Krebsarten/Melanom/melanom_inhalt.html

[4] https://ots.de/Q4mZE4

[5] Dixon, K., Tongkao-On, W., Sequeira, V., Carter, S., Song, E., Rybchyn, M., … Mason, R. (2013). Vitamin D and Death by Sunshine. International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 14(1), 1964-1977. doi: 10.3390/ijms14011964

[6] Muralidhar, S., Filia, A., Nsengimana, J., Pozniak, J., Oshea, S. J., Diaz, J. M., … Newton-Bishop, J. (2019). Vitamin D-VDR Signaling Inhibits Wntss-Catenin-Mediated Melanoma Progression and Promotes Antitumor Immunity. Cancer Research, 79(23), 5986-5998. doi: 10.1158/0008-5472.can-18-3927

[7] Biersack MG: Dissertation 2016, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin: Influence of a three-time erythema subthreshold UV exposure on the mood and the vitamin D level of healthy, young volunteers.

Press contact:

The SonnenAllianz – on behalf of the German Foundation for Health Information and Prevention Prof. Dr. Jörg Spitz Phone: +49 (0)6129 488817 Email: [email protected]

InfoRelations ek, Rudolf Jeschenko, Zehdenicker Str. 12 a, 10119 Berlin Mobile: +49 172 2509103 Email: [email protected]

Original content from: SonnenAllianz, transmitted by news aktuell

Presseportal-Newsroom: news up-to-date GmbH

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