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Posted by: Salvatore J. Zambri, founding member and partner
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), “indoor tanning has been linked with skin cancers including melanoma (the deadliest type of skin cancer), basal cell carcinoma, and squamous cell carcinoma, as well as cancers of the eye (ocular melanoma).” Other dangers of indoor tanning include premature skin aging, changes in skin texture and increased risk of potentially blinding eye diseases.
In fact, CDC statistics indicate that skin cancer is much more prevalent than most Americans realize. Indoor tanning is believed to cause about 419,000 cases of skin cancer each year as compared to about 226,000 cases of lung cancer caused by smoking each year.
“According to the 2011 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System, the following proportions of youth report indoor tanning—
After years of debate over indoor tanning dangers, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has now “issued a final order reclassifying sunlamp products and ultraviolet (UV) lamps intended for use in sunlamp products from low-risk (class I) to moderate-risk (class II) devices. The order also requires that sunlamp products carry a visible black-box warning on the device that explicitly states that the sunlamp product should not be used on persons under the age of 18 years. In addition, certain marketing materials for sunlamp products and UV lamps must include additional and specific warning statements and contraindications.”
As I posted last year, opponents of indoor tanning, including the American Academy of Dermatology, the World Health Organization as well as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, have long advocated for more strict regulation of tanning beds and tanning booths. Hopefully, if nothing else, the new FDA regulation will provide consumers with education and caution about the risks of indoor tanning and dispel the myths surrounding it. Please encourage your loved ones to keep their priorities in order. Be safe.
About the author:
Mr. Zambri is a board-certified civil trial attorney by the National Board of Trial Advocates and a Past-President of the Trial Lawyers Association of Metropolitan Washington, D.C. The association recently named him “Trial Lawyer of the Year” (2011). Super Lawyers recently named him among the “Top Ten” lawyers in the Metro Area (out of more than 80,000 attorneys). He has been rated by Washingtonian magazine as a “Big Gun” and among the “top 100” lawyers in the entire metropolitan area. The magazine also describes him as “one of Washington’s best–most honest and effective lawyers” who specializes in personal injury matters, including automobile accident claims, premises liability, product liability, medical malpractice, and work-accident claims. He has successfully litigated multiple cases against truck and bus companies, the Washington Metropolitan Area transit Authority, and other automobile owners. His law firm, in fact, has obtained the largest settlement ever in a personal injury case involving WMATA. Mr. Zambri has also been acknowledged as one of “The Best Lawyers in America” by Best Lawyers (2014 edition) and has been repeatedly named a “Super Lawyer” by Super Lawyer magazine (2014) — national publications that honor the top lawyers in America.
If you have any questions about your legal rights, please email Mr. Zambri at [email protected] or call him at 202-822-1899.
