Melanoma
(黑素瘤), the deadliest kind of skin cancer is now the most common cancer in
{{U}} {{U}} 1 {{/U}} {{/U}}British women, the country's leading
cancer organization said Wednesday. Skin cancer has {{U}} {{U}} 2
{{/U}} {{/U}}cervical (子宫颈的) cancer as the top cancer striking women in their
20s, according to the latest data from Cancer Research United Kingdom.
The trend is particularly {{U}} {{U}} 3 {{/U}}
{{/U}}since younger people are not generally those most susceptible (易患的) to
melanoma. Rates of skin cancer are {{U}} {{U}} 4 {{/U}}
{{/U}}highest in people over age 75. But experts worry that
increasing numbers of younger people being diagnosed with skin cancer could be
the {{U}} {{U}} 5 {{/U}} {{/U}}of a dangerous trend. Women in
their 20s make {{U}} {{U}} 6 {{/U}} {{/U}}a small percentage of
all patients diagnosed with melanoma in Britain, but nearly a third of all cases
occur in people younger than 50. Based on current numbers
Cancer Research UK predicts that melanoma will become the fourth {{U}}
{{U}} 7 {{/U}} {{/U}}common cancer for men and women of all ages by
2024, and that cases will jump from about 90,000 cases a year to more than
15,500. Cancer experts {{U}} {{U}} 8 {{/U}}
{{/U}}the rising number of skin cancer cases largely to the surge in people using
tanning salons. "Spending time on sun beds is just as {{U}} {{U}}
9 {{/U}} {{/U}}as staying out too long in the sun," said Caroline Cerny
of Cancer Research UK. The organization is starting a SunSmart {{U}}
{{U}} 10 {{/U}} {{/U}}to warn Britons of the dangers of being too
bronzed. "The intensity of ultraviolet rays in some sun beds
can be more than 10 {{U}} {{U}} 11 {{/U}} {{/U}}stronger than
the midday sun," Cerny said. In the United States, several
states require parental approval {{U}} {{U}} 12 {{/U}}
{{/U}}minors can use tanning salons. Wisconsin bans people 16 and {{U}}
{{U}} 13 {{/U}} {{/U}}from using tanning beds, and others ban
children under 14. At least 29 states have regulations governing minors use of
tanning salons. In the UK, Scottish politicians passed
legislation banning these under 18 from using tanning beds, though it hasn't yet
been implemented. There are no plans for {{U}} {{U}} 14 {{/U}}
{{/U}}in the rest of the UK. The world Health Organization has
previously recommended that tanning beds be regulated because of their potential
to damage DNA in the skin. Experts said most deadly skin
cancers could be {{U}} {{U}} 15 {{/U}} {{/U}}if people took the
proper precautions when in the sun and avoided tanning beds.