Costs Associated with Skin Cancer Treatment Surge

The costs associated with skin cancer increased five times as fast as treatments for other cancers between 2002 and 2011, according to a CDC study published online in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

The average annual cost for skin cancer treatment increased from $3.6 billion during 2002-2006 to $8.1 billion during 2007-2011, an increase in costs of 126%.

Skin cancer, the most commonly diagnosed cancer in the United States, is a major and growing public health problem, with the number of skin cancer cases increasing. Nearly 5 million people are treated for skin cancer every year in the US. Most cases of melanoma, the deadliest kind of skin cancer, are caused by exposure to UV light.

“The findings raise the alarm that not only is skin cancer a growing problem in the United States, but the costs for treating it are skyrocketing relative to other cancers, said the lead author of the report, Gery Guy, Ph.D., of the CDC's Division of Cancer Prevention and Control. “This also underscores the importance of skin cancer prevention efforts.”