Tanning beds a matter of public health

As head of the Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery at the University of Illinois at Chicago School of Medicine and President of the American Academy of Otolaryngology, I am writing in support of proposed legislation before the Illinois General Assembly to ban access to tanning beds by anyone under 18.

As a longtime otolaryngologist-head and neck surgeon and facial plastic surgeon and past president of the American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, I can speak from firsthand experience to the damage caused by tanning beds and UV exposure. I have provided facial reconstructive and scar-revision treatments for cancer patients too numerous to count, many of them associated with potentially deadly melanomas and other skin cancers.

The ultraviolet radiation emitted by tanning beds is a known carcinogen associated with these destructive skin cancers. And the younger the individual when first exposed to tanning beds, the greater the potential of melanoma.

While I typically do not advocate government or regulatory intervention on matters related to personal choice, I believe strongly that the type of solution offered in this case is appropriate. This clearly is an issue of significant public-health interest that will save lives, help prevent skin cancers and educate the public as to the dangers of tanning beds.

J. Regan Thomas, M.D.

University of Illinois at Chicago