According to this article by Cosmopolitan, via Yahoo news, a girl from Rhode Island died at the age of 26, due to melanoma, the worst skin cancer, she got from tanning all the time.
As tragic as it is for anyone to die so young, I wasn't one bit surprised when I saw my friend link this story.
Apparently she had worked as a lifeguard for a few summers, and while working under the beach sun for 40+ hours a week, she was only using SPF 4 lotion. She was also using tanning beds nearly weekly to keep her tan in the offseason. She battled the disease for 4 years, and despite the ups and downs, and a few chances of hope, like when her doctors said her tumors were shrinking, she finally succumbed to it and related causes in December of 2008.
It's a shame, but even something as small as keeping your skin shiny can end up taking you out. Most people that get skin cancer think they're invincible, that they're not in danger because it's not lung cancer, or breast cancer. But even skin cancer can kill you, and shouldn't ever be taken lightly.
I will be sure and wear sun screen. The sun seems to really be getting stronger these days.
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