Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2017 Apr 30;7(2):1-6.
doi: 10.5826/dpc.0702a01. eCollection 2017 Apr.

Epidemiological trends in skin cancer

Zoe Apalla  1 , Aimilios Lallas  1 , Elena Sotiriou  1 , Elizabeth Lazaridou  1 , Demetrios Ioannides  1
Affiliations

Epidemiological trends in skin cancer

Zoe Apalla et al. Dermatol Pract Concept. .

Abstract

Skin cancer, including melanoma and non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC), represents the most common type of malignancy in the white population. The incidence rate of melanoma is increasing worldwide, while the associated mortality remains stable, or is slightly decreasing. On the other hand, the incidence for NMSC varies widely, with the highest rates reported in Australia. In the current review, we highlight recent global trends in epidemiology of skin cancer. We discuss controversial issues raised in current epidemiological data, we analyze the most important risk factors associated with the development of melanoma and NMSC and the impact of skin cancer on health care services. Furthermore, we underline the pressing need for improved registration policies, especially for NMSC, and lastly, we refer to the ongoing primary and secondary prevention strategies and their outcomes so far.

Keywords: epidemiology; melanoma; non-melanoma skin cancer; skin cancer.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Competing interests: The authors have no conflicts of interest to disclose.

References

    1. Australasian Epidemiological Association website. [Accessed June 3, 2016]. http://www.aea.asn.au/about-us/what-is-epidemiology.
    1. Leiter U, Eigentler T, Garbe C. Epidemiology of skin cancer. Adv Exp Med Biol. 2014;810:120–140. - PubMed
    1. American Cancer Society. [Accessed June 3, 2016]. http://www.cancer.org/cancer/skincancer-melanoma/detailedguide/melanoma-....
    1. Rastrelli M, Tropea S, Rossi C, Alaibac M. Melanoma: epidemiology, risk factors, pathogenesis, diagnosis and classification. In Vivo. 2014;28:1005–1011. - PubMed
    1. Chen ST, Geller AC, Tsao H. Update on the epidemiology of melanoma. Curr Dermatol Rep. 2013;2:24–34. - PMC - PubMed