Type of Cancer Tied to Sunburn in Childhood

Severe sunburn during childhood appears to double chances of developing skin cancer later in life, a Harvard researcher said Tuesday.

Dr. Arthur J. Sober, a Harvard Medical School dermatologist, said that young people should avoid severe sunburn through the use of sunscreens and protective clothing.

A study involving 218 subjects found that those who had experienced one or more blistering sunburns when they were children or teen-agers were twice as likely to develop malignant melanoma, a form of skin cancer, Sober said.

Poor tanners and those who took long vacations in sunny areas when young were also twice as likely to develop malignant melanoma, he said at the American Cancer Society’s seminar for science writers.

But, even among good tanners, blistering sunburns early in life doubled the chances of developing the disease, he said.

The chances of developing the skin cancer are about 1 in 150, Sober said. Severe sunburns early in life would double that to 1 in 75, he said.