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Geographic residence and ultraviolet (UV) radiation exposure are associated with risk for skin cancer. Using data from 84,000 women in the Nurses’ Health Study, researchers assessed how risk for developing squamous cell cancer (SCC), basal cell cancer (BCC), or melanoma varies by UV exposure at place of residence. Each U.S. state was characterized as having a low, medium, or high UV index. Participants’ places of residence were identified for three ages: birth, 15 years, and 30 years.
After adjusting for risk factors such as natural hair color, risk for SCC was higher for women who were born in states with medium (relative risk, 1.39) or high (RR, 1.87) UV indices than in states with low UV indices. A similar relation was found for place of …