Are Tanning Beds Safe or Do They Cause Melanoma Skin Cancer?

Melanoma is the most common type of cancer that affects young adults 25-29 years old and is the second most common form of cancer in teenagers and young adults ages 15-29. In 2011, there was an estimated 123,590 new cases of melanoma diagnosed in the United States (US) with nearly 8,790 deaths. Every 62 minutes, a person dies of melanoma.

Since 1973, the National Institutes of Health found that the melanoma rates in young women have tripled. Another study published in 2006 showed that tanning beds are associated with a 75% increase in melanoma risk. Approximately 30 million people tan indoors in the US each year and 2.3 million of them are teenagers. Many are led to believe that tanning beds are safer than sunbathing because the bulbs have more UVA radiation than UVB rays. What they do not know is that both UVA and UVB rays can cause skin cancer.

The survival rate in patients who are diagnosed with melanoma cancer early, before the tumor has had a chance to penetrate, is about 99 percent. Unfortunately, many family physicians or primary care physicians are not checking for skin cancer in young men and women and it leads to a delay in diagnosing and treating the cancer and decreasing survival rates.

Since 1958, the Beasley Law Firm has been successfully litigating wrongful deaths, and failure to diagnose or treat cancer, carcinoma in situ, and metastatic disease with documented results. The Philadelphia Beasley Law Firm is a nationally recognized medical malpractice and wrongful death firm that has been awarded over $2 billion for their injured clients. In addition to our experienced attorneys, we also have on staff two physicians and three registered nurses, in addition to decades of expertise that made us a leader in this field. Our collective knowledge assisted in obtaining two of the largest medical negligence verdicts in Pennsylvania history, $100 million and $55 million, as well as hundreds of other multimillion dollar judgments and settlements. If you or a loved one has been injured due to a severe burn or overexposure in a tanning bed or a delay in diagnosing and treating skin cancer, please contact one of our experienced cancer attorneys, doctors or nurses for a strictly confidential and free consultation.