Assistant Majority Leader Jeff Schoenberg (D-Evanston) passed a bill in the Senate Public Health Committee this week that would make indoor tanning beds off limits to those under age 18 because of the heightened risk of skin cancers, including the deadly melanoma.

"The American Cancer Society and doctors agree that the rise in cases of skin cancer among young people is largely attributable to tanning bed use," Schoenberg said. "In a study by the American Academy of Dermatology, regular tanning bed use was associated with a 55 percent increase in the risk of developing melanoma, especially in young women."

Senate Bill 1329 would prohibit individuals younger than 18 years old from using a tanning facility, regardless of whether or not the individual has permission from his or her parents. Currently, Illinois requires teens between 14 and 17 to have a parent give permission in person before they can use tanning facilities. Children under age 14 are prohibited entirely from using tanning facilities.

The Public Health Committee heard testimony from Dr. Stephen Stone, a board-certified dermatologist practicing in Springfield, and from Kathleen Stegle, a 23-year-old melanoma survivor who is a senior at SIU-Carbondale. Dr. Stone reported an increase in the incidence of skin cancer among 14- to 17-year-olds being treated in his practice, and likened the proposed restriction to cigarettes or alcohol.

"We don’t allow parents to extend permission for their children to smoke tobacco products or drink alcohol, and the overexposure to ultraviolet radiation is just as dangerous," said Dr. Stone.

According to the Skin Cancer Foundation, indoor ultraviolet tanners are 74 percent more likely to develop melanoma than those who have never tanned indoors. While the incidence of many common cancers is falling, melanoma continues to rise at a rate faster than that of any of the seven most common cancers. Between 1992 and 2004, melanoma incidence increased 45 percent, or 3.1 percent annually.

"I introduced this bill because I believe we have an obligation to protect young people from long-term health risks caused by indoor tanning, just as we protect them from other unsafe behavior," Schoenberg said. "Awareness of health risks is always a step toward preventing or decreasing the incidence of potentially deadly conditions like skin cancer."