Clinical Edge

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Shade, Sun Avoidance Key for Previous Cancers

JAAD; ePub 2016 May 16; Fischer, et al

Physicians should emphasize sunburn prevention when counseling patients with previous nonmelanoma skin cancer (NMSC), especially younger adults, focusing on shade and sun avoidance over sunscreen, according to a recent study. Researchers sought to determine whether individuals with previous NMSC engage in better sun protection than those with no skin cancer history. They pooled self-reported data (2005 and 2010 National Health Interview Surveys) from US non-Hispanic white adults (758 with and 34,161 without previous NMSC). They found:

• Individuals with previous NMSC vs no history of NMSC had higher rates of frequent use of shade (44.3% vs 37.0%), long sleeves (20.5% vs 7.7%), a wide-brimmed hat (26.1% vs 10.5%), and sunscreen (53.7% vs 33.1%), but did not have significantly lower odds of recent sunburn (29.7% vs 40.7%).

• Among those with previous NMSC, recent sunburn was inversely associated with age, sun avoidance, and shade, but not sunscreen.

Citation: Fischer AH, Wang TS, Yenokyan G, Kang S, Chien, AL. Sunburn and sun-protective behaviors among adults with and without previous nonmelanoma skin cancer (NMSC): A population-based study. [Published online before print May 16, 2016]. JAAD. doi:10.1016/j.jaad.2016.02.1236.