Clothing choices could be linked to melanoma skin cancer
Source: Cancer Research UK, May 2025
Picture a hot summer’s day in the park. You’re surrounded by picnic blankets, children’s games and lazy conversations. The jingle of an ice cream van trickles through the air. But what’s everyone wearing?
Our latest analysis of UK skin cancer data suggests that the way people dress when they’re in the sun could be influencing where they get melanoma – the most serious form of skin cancer.
Data from 2018 to 2021 shows that 40% of melanomas in men were diagnosed on the torso (the back, chest and stomach) – more than any other part of the body. That translates to around 3,700 cases of skin cancer every year.