Rates of non-melanoma skin cancer are falling in Canada — exactly the opposite of what many in the dermatology community are telling us, a new study to be published in the British Journal of Dermatology this month shows. The study makes it even less likely that a recent report alleging that non-melanoma skin cancer cases have tripled in the United States in the past 15 years — a contention of a recent report.

There are no actual registries for non-melanoma skin cancers in Canada or the united States, which leaves figures to be based solely on estimates which vary widely.

The Alberta study may shed light on just how off-the-wall some of those projections are. Researchers followed 100,000 Albertans for 20 years and found that:

• Rates have not increased in women since 2000.
• Rates have declined 1 percent a year in men since 2001.

The Canadian tanning community believes the advent of indoor tanning has helped to foster a “sensiblization” of the UV message in Canada — teaching people to avoid sunburn and overexposure.

To read the CTV story on the study click here.