ASDSA AdvocacyPractice AffairsSkin Cancer Prevention Resources

Skin Cancer Prevention Resources

Skin Cancer is the Most Common Cancer in the United States, Yet It Is Also One of the Most Preventable

Evidence-based Prevention Strategies Are Essential to Reducing Skin Cancer Rates and Protecting Patients

 

 

Skin Cancer Remains an Urgent and Pressing Public Health Issue:

  • One in five Americans will develop skin cancer by age 70.
  • Nearly 5.5 million cases of skin cancer are diagnosed in the United States each year — more than breast, colon, lung, and prostate cancers combined.
  • Melanoma is among the most common cancers diagnosed in young adults and is one of the most common cancers among individuals ages 15-29.
  • More than 40 percent of an individual’s lifetime UV exposure occurs before age 20.
  • More than 88 million adults in the United States get at least one sunburn each year, and over 18 million get sunburned four or more times.
  • Even one blistering sunburn during childhood or adolescence more than doubles a person’s risk of developing melanoma later in life.

Prevention and Early Intervention Save Lives:

Regular sun protection and skin cancer prevention behaviors can significantly reduce lifetime skin cancer risk:
  • Studies have shown that regular sunscreen use can reduce melanoma risk by approximately 50 percent.
  • Daily sun protection, shade access, and sun-protective clothing help reduce cumulative UV damage.
  • Early detection through regular skin examinations improves patient outcomes and reduces morbidity and mortality associated with melanoma.

In order to protect students from dangerous UV exposure while outdoors at school or at camps, ASDSA created the SUNucate Coalition.

The SUNucate Coalition is comprised of more than 60 medical specialty associations, patient advocacy groups and other organizations that use its collective voice to protect students from dangerous UV exposure while outdoors at school or at camps.

  • SUNucate is model legislation designed to address barriers to sunscreen use in schools and promote sun-safe behaviors by allowing students to possess and utilize sunscreen in school and day camps without a prescription or physician’s note
    • Creates a consistent state policy that ensures children have access to FDA-approved sunscreen at school for over-the-counter use—at no cost to the state
    • Broad reaching “medication bans” require students to have a physician’s note in order to bring sunscreen to school—causing decreased access and underutilization of sun-protection measures.
    • The bill does not require the school to provide sunscreen or have school personnel apply sunscreen.
  • Twenty-nine states and the District of Columbia have already passed similar legislation.
  • The importance of this bill is backed by scientific evidence:
    • The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) believes that school policies that prohibit student possession of sunscreen can create barriers to the use of crucial sun protection measures.
    • The United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) believes that children should have access to sunscreen in order to reduce the incidence of skin cancer, along with counseling about minimizing their exposure to UV rays to reduce the risk of skin cancer.
  • Possessing sunscreen in school is supported by the American Medical Association:
    • A resolution has been passed to exempt sunscreen from over-the-counter medication possession bans in schools and encourages schools to allow students to bring and possess sunscreen without restriction and without physician authorization.

ASDSA’s position statement on Sun-safe Behavior in School-aged Children provides additional background on this issue.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has withdrawn its 2015 proposed rule restricting indoor tanning bed use by minors. 

The proposed rule would have prohibited individuals under age 18 from using indoor tanning devices and required adult users to acknowledge the associated risks prior to use.

Indoor Tanning Remains a Well-Established and Preventable Risk Factor for Skin Cancer:

  • Ultraviolet radiation exposure is one of the leading preventable causes of skin cancer.
  • Indoor tanning devices are classified as “carcinogenic to humans” by the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer — the same highest cancer-risk category as tobacco and asbestos.
  • Indoor tanning contributes to more than 400,000 skin cancer cases annually in the United States.
  • Research demonstrates that individuals who use tanning beds 10 or more times increase their melanoma risk by 34%, while use before age 35 is associated with nearly a 60% increased melanoma risk.
  • Indoor tanning devices expose users to UV radiation levels up to five times stronger than natural sunlight.
  • Young women are disproportionately affected by melanoma associated with indoor tanning exposure.

Currently, 22 states and the District of Columbia restrict the use of indoor tanning devices by minors. In the absence of a federal standard, protections and requirements continue to vary across jurisdictions, creating differences in how prevention policies are implemented nationwide.

ASDSA’s position statement on Indoor Tanning provides additional background on this issue. ASDSA will continue to monitor developments and opportunities that support skin cancer prevention at both the federal and state levels.

Congress Advances Sunscreen Reform to Strengthen Skin Cancer Prevention

Congress passed long-awaited sunscreen reform legislation that modernizes the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) outdated review process and will help expand Americans’ access to safe, effective, and innovative sunscreen ingredients widely used around the world. The SAFE Sunscreen Standards Act (H.R. 3686) was signed into law on November 13, 2025, and marks a significant step forward in strengthening the nation’s skin cancer prevention efforts amid rising rates of melanoma and other skin cancers.

The new law allows the FDA to consider real-world evidence, non-animal testing data, and other modern scientific methods when evaluating ultraviolet (UV) filters for approval. It also pauses pending administrative orders until they can be reviewed under these updated standards and directs the agency to issue implementation guidance within one year. Together, these changes remove longstanding regulatory barriers that have prevented new sunscreen ingredients from reaching U.S. consumers for more than two decades.

ASDSA coordinated advocacy efforts for a broad coalition of dermatologic and patient advocacy organizations to advance these reforms. Through direct Capitol Hill meetings, coordinated coalition letters, and ongoing engagement with federal policymakers, ASDSA worked to keep skin cancer prevention and patient safety a key priority of congressional action and build the bipartisan support needed to move the legislation across the finish line.

Following passage of the reform, the FDA has proposed adding bemotrizinol as a new sunscreen active ingredient – the first proposed addition in more than 20 years. Bemotrizinol offers broad-spectrum UVA/UVB protection, low systemic absorption, and a strong safety profile, and is already used in sunscreens available internationally. This proposal represents an early example of how the updated framework can accelerate access to modern sun protection options.

Surgeon General Call to Action

Amid rising skin cancer rates, in July 2014, U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Boris Lushniak released a critical call to action for all Americans to combat skin cancer. The call to action declared skin cancer a public health crisis in the face of staggering statistics showing that nearly 5 million people were treated for skin cancer in the U.S. each year at an estimated cost of 8.1 billion dollars. In response, to combat one of the largest contributors to skin cancer rates at the time, key legislators and public health officials worked to educate the public on indoor tanning’s threats and implement policy measures that protected minors. The efforts successfully helped to reduce skin cancer rates associated with the practice of indoor tanning. Still, even with this progress more than a decade later, skin cancer remains the most common cancer in the U.S.

ASDSA led 23 other organizations in urging the U.S. Surgeon General to renew the Call to Action to Prevent Skin Cancer and develop a plan that will spur meaningful progress in addressing skin cancer.