PASS Urges States, Localities to Ensure Access to Sunscreen as an Important Tool in the Fight Against Melanoma and Other Skin Cancers

WASHINGTON, May 4, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- As we enter into Melanoma and Skin Cancer Awareness Month and prepare to kick off the summer holiday, the Public Access to SunScreens (PASS) Coalition reminds all Americans about the risk UV rays from the sun pose to your skin and encourages individuals to use sunscreen and sun-safe practices to reduce risk of melanoma, other skin cancers and premature aging. The PASS Coalition is a multi-stakeholder alliance of public health organizations, physician groups, sunscreen manufacturers and concerned citizens organized to help prevent skin cancer and improve public health by ensuring Americans have access to safe and effective sunscreens and evidence-based education on sun-safe practices.

It has never been more important to protect your skin from the damaging effects of the sun. This year, more than 207,000 Americans will be diagnosed with melanoma and over 7,000 will succumb to the disease. Scientific evidence strongly supports a regimen of daily sunscreen, UV protective clothing, sunglasses and limiting exposure to direct sunlight as the best way to reduce risk of melanoma.

Recently, states and localities have passed or introduced bans on certain Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved over-the-counter sunscreen ingredients. These bans, which require a prescription for widely used sunscreens that the FDA has determined are safe and effective for over-the-counter use, create a harmful barrier to access to an important skin cancer prevention tool.

"Activities at the state and local level that prevent access to sunscreen can be harmful to the public health, especially when skin cancer diagnosis rates continue to increase," says Melanoma Research Foundation Senior Advocacy Officer Cassie Beisel. "States and localities should defer to the FDA to ensure that consumers have access to the broadest array of sunscreens. The best sunscreen continues to be the one you'll wear every day."

Over the past few years, the PASS Coalition has worked with the FDA and other stakeholders to ensure that consumers understand the importance of sun-safe practices, including daily use of sunscreen, as a skin cancer prevention tool. As the FDA implements new Over-the-Counter (OTC) monograph reform legislation and reviews testing standards for new and existing ingredients, the guidance to consumers continues to be the same: Choose a sunscreen that is at least SPF 30, broad spectrum, and water resistant. Sunscreen ingredients in the United States are safe and have been safely used for almost 40 years.

According to the Skin Cancer Foundation:

• In the U.S., more than 9,500 people are diagnosed with skin cancer every day. More than two people die of the disease every hour;
• the number of melanoma deaths is expected to increase by 4.8 percent in 2021;
• on average, a person's risk for melanoma doubles if they have had more than five sunburns;
• just one blistering sunburn in childhood or adolescence more than doubles a person's chances of developing melanoma later in life;
• the latest figures suggest that more than 15,000 people die of squamous cell carcinoma of the skin in the U.S. each year — more than twice as many as from melanoma; and,
• regular daily use of an SPF 15 or higher sunscreen reduces the risk of developing melanoma by 50 percent..

"The risk of skin cancer continues to grow and limiting access to effective skin cancer prevention turns public health on its head," says Michael Werner, Policy Advisor to the PASS Coalition. "The FDA has continually reiterated the clear benefits of sunscreen and its efficacy as a proven tool in the fight against the growing skin cancer epidemic in the United States." The PASS Coalition advocates for Americans to have access to the latest safe and effective sunscreens that will help promote sun protection measures and reverse the trends that make skin cancers the most common form of cancer in the United States.

The PASS Coalition is an alliance of public health organizations, physician groups, sunscreen manufacturers, and concerned citizens whose mission is to help prevent skin cancer and improve public health by ensuring Americans have access to safe and effective sunscreens and evidence-based education on sun-safe practices.

SOURCE Public Access to SunScreens (PASS) Coalition