While the smaller wavelength UVC rays often only impact the top layer of our skin, UVA rays can deeply penetrate every layer of the skin, capable of causing cellular disruption in the deepest dermis layer (5).
#SUN INDEX COMPARE CITIES SKIN#
If this damage cannot be corrected by our body’s innate cell corrective mechanisms, faulty cell replication can occur, resulting in the formation of skin cancer.Īble to permeate our skin at different levels, protection against all three types of UV rays is essential for adequate sun protection. As the rays interact with the cells in our skin, they cause disruptions and damage to the cell’s DNA. Divided into three different classes based on their wavelengths, UVA, UVB, and UVC rays can permeate into our skin to different depths (4). Skin cancer is primarily caused by chronic exposure to UV rays - the heat energy emitted from our sun. Why paying attention to the UV Index matters While individual genetics, time spent outside, cultural practices, and access to sun-protective barriers play a role in a person’s risk for developing skin cancer, it turns out that your geographic location may increase your risk more than we previously thought. With these numbers trending upwards over the past 25 years, skin cancer is starting to take a serious toll on the health of our global population (2). Estimated to have over 106,000 new cases in 2021 alone (roughly 5.6% of all new cancer diagnoses this year), melanoma is currently ranked as the 19th most common cancer in the world (2)(3). With the rates of skin cancer diagnosis increasing every year, aggressive cancer types like cutaneous malignant melanoma are steadily climbing up the leaderboard of most common cancers around the world. The most common types of non-melanoma skin cancers are basal cell carcinomas and squamous cell carcinomas, both of which have a lower mortality rate than melanoma (1). There are two main types of skin cancer - melanoma (which originates in our melanocyte cells that pigment our skin) and non-melanoma (skin cancer that starts in other types of skin cells). Exposure to high amounts of ultraviolet (UV) rays from the sun may give you that great tan you’ve been after all summer, but it can also dramatically increase your risk of developing skin cancer. As the largest organ in the human body, our skin has a lot of surface area for the potential development of health conditions.
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