• Home
• Patient Info
  • New Patient Forms
  • Insurance and Payment Information
  • Scheduling Appointments
  • What to Bring to Your Appointment
• Cosmetic Services
  • Laser Hair Removal
  • ZERONA^® Slimming
  • Smartlipo™ Laserlipolysis
  • Affirm Fractional Resurfacing
  • Eyelid Lift
  • Q & A
  • Before & After
  • Products
• Medical Services
  • Skin Health Care
  • Medical Programs
  • Teen Acne
• Dr. Rosio
• Patient Education
  • Procedures
  • Dermatology Conditions
  • Education and Support
• Success Stories
• Community Service
• Survivor Stories
• What's New
  • Latest News
  • Press Releases
  • Events
• Register
• Contact Info
• Refer-a-Friend
• Career Opportunities

Sign up for our Email Newsletter

Don't Even Think about going out into your yard before you read THIS article!

Garden & Farm Pesticides Linked To Deadly Skin Cancer. Dermatologist Dr. Rosio does not want you to grow Melanoma.

Sun exposure has always been considered the driving force behind rising rates of melanoma. But new research suggests that repeated, long-term use of pesticides may be an important factor, too.

Workers who apply certain pesticides to farm fields are twice as likely to contract melanoma, a deadly form of skin cancer, according to a new scientific study.

The researchers identified six pesticides that, with repeated exposure, doubled the risk of skin cancer among farmers and other workers who applied them to crops.

The findings add to evidence suggests that frequent use of pesticides could raise the risk of melanoma. Rates of the disease have tripled in the United States in the last 30 years, with sun exposure identified as the major cause.

Four of the chemicals - maneb, mancozeb, methyl-parathion and carbaryl - are used in the United States on a variety of crops, including nuts, vegetables and fruits.

The findings also may have implications for consumers who use pesticides in their homes or yards. Carbaryl, one of the pesticides linked to skin cancer, is the active ingredient in the insecticide Sevin, which is widely used by consumers to kill pests in gardens and lawns.

 Risks of the disease increased 2.5 times for applicators exposed to more than 63 days of maneb/mancozeb in their lifetime. Applicators who were exposed carbaryl more than 56 days were 1.7 times more likely and exposure to either methyl or ethyl parathion more than 56 days increased their melanoma risks by 2.4 times.

The findings could have meaning for the rest of the population, said Dale Sandler, chief of epidemiology at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and a co-investigator on the study.

Sandler said that some of the chemicals are used by the general population. One major difference is that the workers use protective equipment. This has the potential to make even relatively lower doses risky for residential users.

"The applicators receive continuing education to learn about safe handling of these chemicals, but you or I may go to the store and not read the label," Sandler said.

The risks also go beyond the workers or consumers who use the pesticides. Often the chemicals are in the environment near farms and can contaminate groundwater, Sandler said. Dr. Rosio suggests reading labels, and favoring certain safer pesticides such as permethrins. I use these safely in my own garden, as well as in medicines to help my patients dermatologically who have infestations of their skin, including scabies and lice. This is another good reason for washing fruits and vegetables before eating, said Dr. Rosio.

Having red hair increased the workers' skin cancer risk by nearly four times, according to the study. This has been confirmed by Dr. Rosio's findings used in the first known United States Skin Cancer Risk Assessment on Microcomputer program (SCRAM) which was developed by Rosio.  People with fair skin are more likely to be sunburned, which can lead to melanoma. Obesity also was linked to an increased risk, for unknown reasons. Dr. Rosio explains that his logical explanation for this is that like fat soluble vitamins, certain pesticides are stored more readily in fat.

Previous research in Europe and the United States also has linked long-term pesticide exposure to increased melanoma risks. In Europe, researchers found that people who used pesticides indoors more than four times a year had twice the melanoma rate of people who used less.