Most Indoor Tanners Aren't Getting Screened for Skin Cancer

Most indoor tanners are not getting checked for skin cancer, a new study shows.

Researchers analyzed data from the National Health Interview Survey of more than 30,000 U.S. adults. They looked at rates of skin cancer screening by a physician among people who had indoor tanned and those who had not.

About 16.5 percent of the sample had indoor tanned, most of them more than a year ago. About 19.5 percent of non-indoor tanners had been screened for skin cancer, and a little more than 30 percent of indoor tanners had. This means that 70 percent of those who reported indoor tanning have not been screened.

Moreover, people with lower household incomes (less than $100,000 per year) were less likely to be screened, suggesting that making screening more accessible to this population might increase screening rates.

The findings appear in JAMA Dermatology.

The research was supported in part by grants from the National Cancer Institute (P30CA006927, T32CA0090035).