Earth Day Environmental Careers Symposium

Information on exposure and reaction to sunlight, together with the history tf exposure to fluorescent lighting, was elicited by postal questionnaire. Case-control analyses from 58 patients with malignant melanoma, 182 matched controls and 151 unmatched controls showed associations between malignant melanoma and (i) bouts of painful sunburn, (ii) reaction of untanned skin to sunlight, and (iii) number of moles (on right forearm), whereas no association could be found with exposure to fluorescent light at work. Beral et al. (1982) published the results of a case-control investigation into the aetiology of melanoma (malignant melanoma) and found a trend of increasing risk of melanoma with increasing reported duration of exposure to fluorescent light at work. We have carried out a case-control study to investigate the role of sunlight and fluorescent light in the aetiology of melanoma. The elucidation of aetiological factors for this disease is particularly important because 'if current trends are not reversed, malignant melanoma will eventually be transferred from a rare cancer category into a common cancer category' (Sorahan, 1982). Methods The proforma (postal questionnaire) comprised questions on the following topics: use of fluorescent lights (strip lighting) in the home; amount of outdoor activity and protection from the sun when about 20 years old; reaction of untanned skin to midday summer sun; tendency to freckle in the