Global health experts have
moved use of sunbeds and exposure to ultraviolet radiation (including
sun exposure) to the highest risk category for causing cancer: they now
join agents such as tobacco, asbestos and benzene in being classed as
"carcinogenic to humans" whereas before they were classed as "probably
carcinogenic".
The move follows a new report reviewing available
research that found that starting to use sunbeds before the age of 30
increased a person's risk of developing the deadliest form of skin
cancer (melanoma) by 75 per cent. Other agents have also been moved to
the highest risk category following the report.
The findings
that led to the decision by the World Health Organization (WHO)
International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) to reclassify the
cancer risk of sunbeds, ultraviolet (UV) radiation, and other agents,
are published in a Special Report in the August issue of The Lancet Oncology.
Source: Medical News Today
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/159124.php