Tuesday, May 11, 2010

Skin Cancers Linked to Driving

A new study by the St. Louis School of Medicine has found an apparent link between skin cancer and long hours spent at the wheel. Americans, of course, drive on the right meaning the driver sits on the left side. That leaves the driver's left side, arm and face in particular, exposed to UV radiation.

What the researchers found was an increased incidence of left-side skin cancers. For men it was 56% while women were still 52% left-side over right-side. However when it came to the most lethal of skin cancers, melanoma, they occured on the left side in 74% of cases.

There's nothing really new to this. Airline pilots have known this for years because, with the large side cockpit windows and the high altitude exposure to not just UV but also elevated gamma radiation, they've been particularly vulnerable to these sorts of cancers.

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