Skin cancer deaths among men have jumped sharply in wealthy nations since 1985, with death rates among women rising more slowly or even declining, researchers have told a medical conference in Glasgow.
Reasons for the difference between sexes are unclear but evidence suggests men are less likely to protect themselves from the sun or pay attention to public health warnings, Dorothy Yang, a doctor said.
More than 90% of melanoma (黑素瘤) cancers are caused by skin cell damage from exposure to the sun or other sources of ultraviolet (UV) radiation, according to the US Centers for Disease Control.
In eight of 18 developed countries examined, men’s skin cancer death rates had increased in the past 30 years by at least 50%.
But the nations with the biggest rise in skin cancer deaths were often not those with the highest death rates, the research showed. In Australia, for example, nearly six out of every 100,000 men died of the disease in 2013 -2015. That is twice the second highest death rate (Finland), but only a 10% increase compared to 30 years earlier.
Australia has been an early performer of public health media campaigns since the 1970s to promote sun-smart’ behaviour. While debate continues on how much of Australia’s record skin cancer rate originates from the sun, 30 years of public health campaigns have no doubt made Australians acutely aware of the dangers.
Skin cancer deaths among women in 1985 in Australia occurred at half the rate as for men, and declined by 10% over the next 30 years. In other countries, female death from the disease went down over the same period. In some other sun-loving nations, however, women saw at least as sharp a jump from 1985 to 2015 in death rates as men.
Scientists are studying whether biological or genetic factors might also play a role in skin cancer, but findings so far are inconclusive.
【小题1】What can be concluded from the passage?
| A．Death rates among women are declining all the time. |
| B．Australia is the first country to conduct public health media campaigns. |
| C．Death rate of skin cancer in Australia was once the highest. |
| D．Female death rate of skin cancer in some sun-loving countries went down. |
【小题2】What probably keeps people away from skin cancer according to the text?
| A．Declining exposure to UV. |
| B．Biological or genetic factors. |
| C．People’s love for sun. |
| D．People paying little attention to public health warnings. |
【小题3】What does the underlined word “inconclusive” in the last paragraph probably mean?
| A．Unclear. | B．Evident. | C．Definite. | D．Satisfying. |
【小题4】What’s people’s attitude to public health campaigns in Australia?
| A．Doubtful. | B．Positive. | C．Critical. | D．Controversial. |
