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Posted on Oct 30, 2013, 6 a.m.
Sunscreen not only provides protection against the damage that can lead to skin cancer, but it shields the p53 gene, a gene that works to prevent cancer.
While it is generally accepted that sunscreen helps to minimize burning, whether sunscreen helps to prevent skin cancers has been the subject of some debate. Elke Hacker, from the Queensland University of Technology (Australia), and colleagues have elucidated the molecular mechanism of sunscreen. The team confirmed previous findings that sunscreen protects against all three forms of skin cancer: BCC (basal cell carcinoma); SCC (squamous cell carcinoma); and malignant melanoma. Further, these researchers observed that sunscreen is effective at shielding the p53 gene, a gene that works to prevent cancer.
Hacker E, Boyce Z, Kimlin MG, Wockner L, Pollak T, Vaartjes SA, Hayward NK, Whiteman DC. “The effect of MC1R variants and sunscreen on the response of human melanocytes in vivo to ultraviolet radiation and implications for melanoma.” Pigment Cell Melanoma Res. 2013 Aug 21.
