Sun-basking is just asking for skin woes

As a teenager, Bonnie Myers would lie on the black roof of her home, an aluminum foil reflector shining sun onto her face. With red hair, freckles and pale skin, the Holladay resident had a hard time getting tan, but that did not stop her from trying to get that golden glow every summer.

Those sun-basking summers caught up three years ago with Myers, now 53, when doctors found skin cancer on her stomach and back — places she had repeatedly sunburned years ago. After two surgeries to remove large areas of skin from her back and stomach, Myers was left with 8-inch scars on her body and the fear that her sunbathing days may cause more cancer.

"No one knew the sun was bad for us," she said. "Now I don't even like the sun shining on me. It's frightening."

Myers has a lot of company. About 1 million Americans are diagnosed with skin cancer every year. In 2004, the American Cancer Society estimates 10,250 people will die of skin cancer, and most of the deaths will be related to the deadliest form of skin cancer, melanoma.

When Myers found out she had melanoma, her mind went back to her sun-tanning days when she never used sunscreen, instead using baby oil to enhance her tan.

"We were just sun worshippers. When you are a kid, you think you are invincible," she said. "My own daughter has been through this tragedy with us, but she still lies out in the sun."

Sancy Leachman, director of the Melanoma Clinic at the Huntsman Cancer Institute, said many people have an "it won't happen to me" attitude and ignore doctors' warnings to get out of the sun. Now, during the dog days of August, Leachman said, sunbathers are out in full force, soaking up the sun to perfect their body bronze.

"What they don't realize is they are doing something that can be life-threatening," she said.

The risks are particularly high in Utah, Leachman added, because the state's higher elevation allows more of the ultraviolet rays that cause sunburns to reach those who are exposed. Utahns also are mostly Caucasians with fair skin, which is highly vulnerable to sunburn-induced skin cancer.

The risk of developing skin cancer for Salt Lake City residents, for example, is 115 times greater than for those living in New York City, according to institute statistics. Estimates indicate 420 Utahns will be diagnosed with melanoma this year.

Despite the statistics, Leachman said many young people are unwilling to heed the advice of doctors because getting skin cancer seems far in the future. She said she often has young patients tell her they would rather be tan now, even if that means having scars or wrinkles later in life.