For every article about the risks of sun exposure or a guide to sunscreens, you don’t have to look far to find one about the health benefits of sunshine or a how-to for achieving the best tan. Messaging around sun exposure is mixed, to say the least, and it’s no wonder that despite having more sun protection tools than ever before, rates of skin cancer have never been higher. In this episode, we delve into the relationship between UV light and skin cancers, answering your (sun)burning questions about the different types of cancers and how sunscreens actually work. We then explore the history of sun protective methods and how attitudes around tanning have changed dramatically over time. We wrap up the episode with a look at rates of skin cancers around the globe today and exciting research showing the benefits of sunscreens as well as how AI might be used to help diagnose skin cancer. Tune in for an info-packed episode that will have you reaching for that sunscreen bottle.
| History | Biology |
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| Armstrong, Bruce K., Anne Kricker, and Dallas R. English. “Sun exposure and skin cancer.” The Australasian journal of dermatology 38 (1997): S1-6. | Madan, V., Lear, J.T. and Szeimies, R.M., 2010. Non-melanoma skin cancer. The lancet, 375(9715), pp.673-685. |
| Bennett, Sabrina Lichon, and Amor Khachemoune. “Dispelling myths about sunscreen.” Journal of Dermatological Treatment 33.2 (2022): 666-670. | Schadendorf, D., van Akkooi, A.C., Berking, C., Griewank, K.G., Gutzmer, R., Hauschild, A., Stang, A., Roesch, A. and Ugurel, S., 2018. Melanoma. The Lancet, 392(10151), pp.971-984. |
| Drissi, Madeeha, Emily Carr, and Chad Housewright. “Sunscreen: a brief walk through history.” Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings. Vol. 35. No. 1. Taylor & Francis, 2022. | Miller, A.J. and Mihm Jr, M.C., 2006. Melanoma. New England Journal of Medicine, 355(1), pp.51-65. |
| Gorantla, Vikram C., and John M. Kirkwood. “State of melanoma: an historic overview of a field in transition.” Hematology/Oncology Clinics 28.3 (2014): 415-435. | Schadendorf, D., Fisher, D.E., Garbe, C., Gershenwald, J.E., Grob, J.J., Halpern, A., Herlyn, M., Marchetti, M.A., McArthur, G., Ribas, A. and Roesch, A., 2015. Melanoma. Nature reviews Disease primers, 1(1), pp.1-20. |
| Holman, Dawn M., et al. “Patterns of sunscreen use on the face and other exposed skin among US adults.” Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology 73.1 (2015): 83-92. | Ruiz Beguerie, J. and de Diego, C., 2022. Freckles, Lentigos, Melanocytic Nevi, and Melanoma. Atlas of Dermatology, Dermatopathology and Venereology: Cutaneous Infectious and Neoplastic Conditions and Procedural Dermatology, pp.403-433. |
| Lee, Carrie, et al. “Historical review of melanoma treatment and outcomes.” Clinics in dermatology 31.2 (2013): 141-147. | Craythorne, E. and Al-Niami, F., 2017. Skin cancer. Medicine, 45(7), pp.431-434. |
| Ma, Yangmyung, and Jinah Yoo. “History of sunscreen: An updated view.” Journal of cosmetic dermatology 20.4 (2021): 1044-1049. | Rubin, A.I., Chen, E.H. and Ratner, D., 2005. Basal-cell carcinoma. New England Journal of Medicine, 353(21), pp.2262-2269. |
| Rebecca, Vito W., Vernon K. Sondak, and Keiran SM Smalley. “A brief history of melanoma: from mummies to mutations.” Melanoma research 22.2 (2012): 114. | Wong, C.S.M., Strange, R.C. and Lear, J.T., 2003. Basal cell carcinoma. Bmj, 327(7418), pp.794-798. |
| Urbach, Frederick. “The historical aspects of sunscreens.” Journal of photochemistry and photobiology B: Biology 64.2-3 (2001): 99-104. | Alam, M. and Ratner, D., 2001. Cutaneous squamous-cell carcinoma. New England Journal of Medicine, 344(13), pp.975-983. |
| Urteaga B, Oscar, and George T. Pack. “On the antiquity of melanoma.” Cancer 19.5 (1966): 607-610. | Narayanan, D.L., Saladi, R.N. and Fox, J.L., 2010. Ultraviolet radiation and skin cancer. International journal of dermatology, 49(9), pp.978-986. |
| Weig, Emily A., et al. “Assessing factors affecting sunscreen use and barriers to compliance: a cross-sectional survey-based study.” Journal of Dermatological Treatment (2019). | Goyal, M., Knackstedt, T., Yan, S. and Hassanpour, S., 2020. Artificial intelligence-based image classification methods for diagnosis of skin cancer: Challenges and opportunities. Computers in biology and medicine, 127, p.104065. |
| Baz Luhrmann – Everybody’s Free To Wear Sunscreen | Walker, H., Maitland, C., Tabbakh, T., Preston, P., Wakefield, M. and Sinclair, C., 2022. Forty years of Slip! Slop! Slap! A call to action on skin cancer prevention for Australia. Public Health Research & Practice, 32(1). |
| Sander, M., Sander, M., Burbidge, T. and Beecker, J., 2020. The efficacy and safety of sunscreen use for the prevention of skin cancer. Cmaj, 192(50), pp.E1802-E1808. | |
| Rosenthal, A., Stoddard, M., Chipps, L. and Herrmann, J., 2019. Skin cancer prevention: a review of current topical options complementary to sunscreens. Journal of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology, 33(7), pp.1261-1267. | |
| Lindstrom, A.R., von Schuckmann, L.A., Hughes, M.C.B., Williams, G.M., Green, A.C. and van der Pols, J.C., 2019. Regular sunscreen use and risk of mortality: long-term follow-up of a skin cancer prevention trial. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 56(5), pp.742-746. | |
| Olsen, C.M., Wilson, L.F., Green, A.C., Biswas, N., Loyalka, J. and Whiteman, D.C., 2018. How many melanomas might be prevented if more people applied sunscreen regularly?. British Journal of Dermatology, 178(1), pp.140-147. | |
| Gupta, R., Rady, P.L., Doan, H.Q. and Tyring, S.K., 2020. Development of a β-HPV vaccine: updates on an emerging frontier of skin cancer prevention. Journal of Clinical Virology, 126, p.104348. | |
| Green, A.C., Williams, G.M., Logan, V. and Strutton, G.M., 2011. Reduced melanoma after regular sunscreen use: randomized trial follow-up. J Clin Oncol, 29(3), pp.257-263. | |
| Paul, S.P., 2019. Ensuring the safety of sunscreens, and their efficacy in preventing skin cancers: challenges and controversies for clinicians, formulators, and regulators. Frontiers in Medicine, p.195. | |
| Aggarwal, P., Knabel, P. and Fleischer Jr, A.B., 2021. United States burden of melanoma and non-melanoma skin cancer from 1990 to 2019. Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, 85(2), pp.388-395. | |
| Leiter, U., Keim, U. and Garbe, C., 2020. Epidemiology of skin cancer: update 2019. Sunlight, Vitamin D and Skin Cancer, pp.123-139. | |
| Gloster Jr, H.M. and Neal, K., 2006. Skin cancer in skin of color. Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, 55(5), pp.741-760. |
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