For males and females combined, incidence fell for those aged 15 to 44, increased for those ≥55
TUESDAY, Feb. 6, 2018 (HealthDay News) — In recent years there has been an increase in melanoma incidence, with more than 70 percent of melanomas diagnosed among those aged 55 years and older, according to a research letter published online Jan. 31 in JAMA Dermatology.
Dawn M. Holman, M.P.H., from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, and colleagues calculated incidence rates for melanoma from January 2010 to December 2014 for non-Hispanic whites (NHWs) aged 15 years or older.
The researchers found that 192,979 melanomas were diagnosed among NHW males and 131,976 melanomas were diagnosed among NHW females from January 2010 to December 2014. Most melanomas (more than 70 percent) were diagnosed in those aged 55 years or older. The incidence rates varied from 2 to 198.3 per 100,000 among those aged 15 to 24 and >85 years, respectively, for males, and from 4.5 to 60.9 per 100,000 in the same age groups for females. From January 2005 to December 2014, there were statistically significant increases in melanoma incidence among both NHW males and females aged 15 years and older. For males and females combined and for males only, incidence decreased significantly among those aged 15 to 24, 25 to 34, and 35 to 44 years, and increased significantly for those aged 55 years and older.
“The steady increase in melanoma incidence rates among older adults indicates a need for efforts that promote skin cancer preventive behaviors throughout adulthood,” the authors write.
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