This souvenir might come back to burn you

Mom was thrilled for her daughter. Who wouldn't want to go on a tropical vacation with a family friend, far from your own set of annoying brothers and sisters (and parents)?

When the teen arrived safely home, the mother noted the teen's bronzed skin and asked what tanning lotion she had used to get such a beautiful glow. The girl seemed surprised, explaining to her mom that while she had certainly used sunscreen on her face to avoid a nasty red burn, she had not used any chemicals on her body. That tan was all from Mother Nature.

Mom shook her head. This was not her first go-round with an adolescent, and the mother knew that even when you're with them, you can't protect teenagers from themselves. Despite being familiar with her extended family's worrisome history of melanoma and basal cell skin cancers, the teen remained unmoved and was convinced that she was immune to such disease.

Why worry about that beautiful tan? Melanoma is recognized by researchers at the National Cancer Institute as the "most serious" type of skin cancer. This cancer diagnosis is given to 54,000 Americans each year, and melanoma cases are noted to have dramatically increased in the United States over the past 30 years.

Of particular concern for parents of young women is that between 1980 and 2004, the NCI also reported a 50 percent increase in the annual incidence of invasive cutaneous melanoma in 15- to 39-year-old Caucasian females.

Though risk factors are not found for every individual who develops melanoma, dermatologists at the cancer institute stress that there are several factors that are linked to an increased risk of this serious skin disease.

These risk factors include: having many dysplastic or abnormal nevi or moles; sporting more than 50 regular moles; inheriting a fair skin type; having a personal history of melanoma or other skin cancers; having a family history of melanoma; suffering from a weakened immune system; experiencing a severe blistering sunburn during childhood or even as an adult; and a final factor that we have some control over - exposing uncovered skin to ultraviolet radiation.

Lest your teen try to convince you that one type of tanning is superior or safer than another, you can counter with the cancer institute's conclusion that exposure to both natural and artificial (i.e. sunlamp and tanning booth) sources of UV radiation damages the skin and increases an individual's risk of future melanoma. The institute therefore recommends limiting sun exposure and altogether avoiding time under artificial UV sources.

The National Cancer Institute recommends that children and adults - I often see my tanned teen patients accompanied by their even more deeply bronzed sun-worshiping mothers - take simple steps to avoid overexposure to the UV sources that increase the risk of melanoma.

UV safety tips are well-known, but for completeness-sake, we'll review the recommendations: when possible, avoid the midday sun (10 a.m. to 4 p.m.); wear protective hats, sunglasses and clothing; apply, and reapply every two hours, a sunscreen with an SPF of 30 or higher; and lastly, think about UV protection even on cold winter days. Snow and ice are particularly efficient reflectors of the sun's rays.

• Dr. Helen Minciotti is a mother of five and a pediatrician with a practice in Schaumburg. She formerly chaired the Department of Pediatrics at Northwest Community Hospital in Arlington Heights.