This Article  • Full text  • PDF  • Send to a friend  • Save in My Folder  • Save to citation manager  • Permissions  Citing Articles  • Citing articles on HighWire  • Citing articles on ISI (5)  • Contact me when this article is cited  Related Content  • Similar articles in this journal

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings.

In the September issue of the ARCHIVES, Naylor and Farmer¹ presented a detailed overview of the experimental data that explored the effects of sunscreens and made a passionate defense of the potential of sunscreen use in the prevention of skin cancers. We are writing to express our concerns about the arguments and conclusions the authors have drawn.

While experimental studies have shown the ability of sunscreens to protect against sunburns and some sun-induced skin lesions, there are currently no data showing that sunscreen use protects against melanoma. Furthermore, results from animal trials or experiments conducted with highly selected subjects (ie, patients with a history of solar keratoses or nonmelanoma skin cancer) are not necessarily valid for the general population.

Eleven of the 12 epidemiological studies conducted so far that examine sunscreen use and melanoma or basal cell carcinoma occurrence² show that skin cancer risk was always increased among sunscreen users, . . . [Full Text of this Article]

THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES

Sunscreens
Rieger
Arch Dermatol 1998;134:1297-1297.
FULL TEXT