Dermatology World May 2011 : Page-32
Banning the Tan gains momenTum dermatologists to navigate through the regulatory process, Dr. Brod said, including model legislation, examples of letters to legislatures, and talking points, as well as knowledgeable staff in the Washington, D.C. office. “States don’t have to reinvent the wheel,” he said. “The Academy can also put you in touch with others who are working on this in their respective states.” time risk of melanoma by as much as 75 percent. It was the agency’s 2007 systematic review, published in the International Journal of Cancer that prompted the WHO to categorize tanning beds as carcinogenic to human beings in 2009. That pronouncement has been echoed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. fEdEraL Efforts muLtipLy In 2007, the Tanning Accountability and Notifica-tion (TAN) Act, sponsored by Rep. Carolyn Maloney Another reason that dermatologists are optimistic about the passage of regulations is the growing body of evidence (D-N.Y.), called on the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to examine the effectiveness of warning labels that links exposure to UV radiation from indoor tanning on tanning bed devices. Although consumer panels devices with an increased risk of skin cancer. “Recent were convened to assess the appropriateness of the studies make it very clear that tanning beds are definitely current labels and their comments in support of The dermatology community is in a position to alternate labeling leverage these regulations into a teachable moment. were reported by the FDA, the agency has not yet implemented new regulations to change the required labels. contributing to the rise in melanoma,” Dr. Halpern said. Three years later, Rep. Maloney introduced the In the past year alone, there has been a huge accumula-Tanning Bed Cancer Control Act of 2010. It calls for tion of evidence, Dr. Weinstock concurred. the FDA to examine the classification of indoor tanning In 2010, two population-based studies found that beds. Proponents would like to see them re-classified the use of indoor tanning devices increase the risk of as Class II or III devices. They are currently Class I developing melanoma. The Skin Health Study pub-devices along with bandages, tongue depressors, and lished in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention gauze, with very little oversight, Dr. Brod noted. If tan-determined that this risk increased with frequency ning beds are categorized as Class II devices, the FDA of use measured by hours, sessions, and years. As an could require more stringent performance standards example, an individual with more than 50 hours, 100 sessions, or 10 or more years of tanning was up to three regarding the strength of UV rays being emitted and amount of exposure time. It has been decades since times more likely to develop melanoma than a person who never tanned indoors. Similarly, the use of tanning tanning bed classification was last examined by the FDA, Chandra said. Although the legislation did not beds was associated with an increased risk of early-onset melanoma — the risk increasing with greater use pass, it will be re-introduced this May. However, in an ongoing effort to address indoor — in the Australian Melanoma Family Study published tanning, the FDA’s Medical Devices Advisory Commit-in the International Journal of Cancer . Among those tee met last March and sent its recommendations to the who ever used indoor tanning and who were diagnosed agency. Among the committee’s recommendations was with melanoma between the ages of 18 and 29 years, that tanning lamps and beds should not be Class I devices 76 percent of melanomas were attributable to tanning and do not have to be regulated or classified separately bed use. Furthermore, a sharp increase in melanoma based on whether they emit UVA or UVB radiation. incidence was linked to the increase in the number of The panel members favored patient information indoor tanning salons in Iceland in a 2010 study pub-beyond labels and more prominent posting of such lished in the American Journal of Epidemiology . warnings. The majority of panel members favored an All of these studies support the findings by the age restriction for tanning. The FDA is expected to is-World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer that noted first exposure to tanning sue a proposed ruling soon. beds before the age of 35 increases an individual’s life-Continued on p. 34 32 Dermatology WorlD // May 2011 www.aad.org Body of EvidEncE grows
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