Taller Women May Have Increased Risk for Skin Cancer

The taller a woman is, the greater her risk for developing the deadly skin cancer melanoma, according to a recent study of American women. 

The study, published in the July issue of Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention, found that each 4-inch increase in height is associated with a 13 percent increase in overall cancer risk. The specific cancers noted were melanoma, colorectum, colon, rectum, breast, endometrium, ovary, kidney, thyroid and multiple myeloma.

The study analyzed 144,701 women ages 50 to 79 participating in the Women’s Health Initiative, a long-term research program established by the National Institutes of Health in 1991.

“We found that there was a strong, significant association between height and cancer risk, both for all cancers combined and for several specific cancer sites,” said Dr. Thomas Rohan, chair and professor of epidemiology and population health at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in the Bronx, New York.

Rohan and his colleagues adjusted for known risk factors of cancer, such as ethnicity, body weight, smoking, alcohol intake, cancer screening and hormone therapy use. The study is one of the most detailed to confirm that being tall independently increases a woman’s chances of developing cancer.

Even though the study was performed on women, it could spell out bad news for men, as well.

“Our study was in women, but when we looked at studies of men as well, it is very similar,” said Dr. Jane Green, a clinical epidemiologist at the University of Oxford, England, and the lead author of the largest study to date of the link between cancer and height. “[The link between cancer and height] doesn’t seem to depend on when the study was done, or what the population was, or what the height of the population was on average, or the ethnicity of the population. It may suggest something interesting about how cancer develops in general.”

Similar studies have been performed in other Western populations such as the United Kingdom, Canada and Asia.

“There had been several previous studies but there hadn’t been much done in North America,” said Dr. Rohan.

Although researchers don’t understand exactly why height is associated with an increased risk of developing cancer, they have come up with several theories that could explain this phenomenon. Some researchers speculate that because taller people have more cells, and cells can mutate as they divide, this could lead to a greater risk for developing cancer.

Another theory has to do with genetics.

“Eighty percent of the variation in height in Western populations is estimated to be determined by genetics,” stated the study. These same genes may contribute to cancer development, as well.

Rohan would like to see future studies examine the genes associated with height to see if there is a link to cancer.

Does this study mean tall people should worry about their cancer risk? Not exactly. Although there is a link, the association of height and cancer is significant but “modest,” said Green. Being tall actually carries a lower risk of some other diseases, such as heart disease and stroke.

“You’ve got to look at the bigger picture,” said Green.

All people, short and tall, should visit a dermatologist several times a year to check for skin cancer. Take care of your skin by wearing UVA- and UVB-blocking sunscreen whenever you’re going to be outside, and take caution to shade yourself from the sun with appropriate clothing and a hat. To schedule an appointment with Greenville Dermatology, call us today at (864) 242-5872.