Even as the rates of some cancers are falling, Mayo Clinic is seeing an alarming trend: the dramatic rise of skin cancer, especially among people under 40. According to a study by Mayo Clinic researchers, the incidence of melanoma has escalated, and young women are the hardest hit.
The study shows the number of melanomas found among women under 40 years old increased by more than eightfold between the 1970s and 2000s. Cases of melanoma among men under 40 also increased by more than fourfold during the same time period. But the odds of surviving melanoma, the most dangerous form of skin cancer, have improved over time, a new study found.
Researchers say women may be hardest hit because they are more likely to participate in activities such as using tanning beds or suntanning.
They say the findings are alarming, considering the rates of many other types of cancers are declining.
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