Skin Cancer Risk in Military Personnel

Evidence for the Link

Squamous cell carcinoma occurrence is usually related to chronic ultraviolet light exposure and is especially common in sun-damaged skin of fair-skinned individuals, according to the British Journal of Dermatology 1, 2
Epidemiologic evidence convincingly links UV radiation exposure during youth and early adulthood to moderately increased risk for skin cancer later in life, as reported in the Annals of Internal Medicine 3

The British Association of Dermatologists confirms good evidence linking squamous cell carcinomas with chronic actinic damage 2

Fair-skinned veterans with red or blond hair and light eye color who served in high-UV environments face compounded risk, although this fact is from Praxis Medical Insights, it is still relevant 4
The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force concludes that current evidence is insufficient to assess the balance of benefits and harms of routine whole-body skin examination screening in the general population, however clinicians should remain alert for suspicious lesions in high-risk veterans during examinations performed for other purposes, as stated by the Annals of Internal Medicine and JAMA 5, 6, 7
Asymmetry, border irregularity, color variability, diameter greater than 6 mm (ABCD criteria), or rapidly changing lesions warrant biopsy, according to the Annals of Internal Medicine 6
Veterans with atypical moles or more than 50 moles constitute groups at substantially increased risk requiring closer monitoring, as reported in the Annals of Internal Medicine 6

Document military service history including theater of operation, duration, and occupational sun exposure when evaluating any veteran with skin lesions, as this information guides risk stratification and treatment selection, although this fact is from Praxis Medical Insights, a better source would be preferred, however it is still relevant 8