Cancers of Hair, Nails,Sweat Glands on the Rise in US

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Cancers of Hair, Nails, Sweat Glands Appear to be on the Rise in U.S

By _ son-_

(http://www.aolhealth.com/bloggers/catherine-donaldson-evans) Jun 21st 2010

4:00PM

Categories: _News_ (http://www.aolhealth.com/categories/news/)

Rare _skin cancers_

(http://www.aolhealth.com/condition-center/skin-cancer) of the sweat glands,

hair, nails and mammary glands seem to be on the

rise in the United States and scientists are trying to figure out why,

according to a new study.

Though the tumors, called cutaneous appendageal carcinomas, are still

unusual, the article in the June issue of the _Archives of Dermatology_

(http://archderm.ama-assn.org/) , a _Journal of the American Medical

Association_

(http://www.jama.ama-assn.org/) publication, said their rates are

apparently increasing among American patients.

The _National Cancer Institute_ (http://www.cancer.gov/) 's W.

Blake and colleagues studied trends as well as incidence and survival rates of

the diseases using 16 _cancer_

(http://www.aolhealth.com/condition-center/cancer) registries from 1978 to 2005

from a report called the Surveillance,

Epidemiology and End Results Program.

About 5.1 cases per 1 million people developed the skin appendage tumors

each year, with men more likely to get one of the _cancers_

(http://www.aolhealth.com/condition-center/cancer) than women, researchers

found. The most

common type was cancer of the sweat glands, or apocrine-eccrine carcinoma.

The rates of the cancers were highest in non-Hispanic whites and lower in

Hispanic whites, blacks, Asians and Pacific Islanders. The diseases'

incidence rose with age, according to the findings, which showed a 100-fold

difference between people aged 20 to 29 and those 80 and older.

Among the reasons for the apparent increase are the evolution of the

classification of tumors, a rise in sun and UV radiation exposure and an aging

population, study corresponding author Dr. R. Toro told AOL Health.

The tumors have also become more widely diagnosed over time, in part

thanks to a spike in early screenings -- with a 150 percent jump in the

incidence rates between 1978 to 1982 and 2002 to 2005. Sweat gland cancers

increased 170 percent and cancers of the eyelid glands 217 percent, according

to

the researchers.

Dr. A. -Zuazaga, a _dermatologist_

(http://www.aolhealth.com/conditions/dermatologist) at University Hospitals

Case Medical Center in

Ohio, said the carcinomas often appear as small red bumps or pimples on the

skin that won't go away.

" We do think there's an environmental component, " he told AOL Health.

" There's more indoor tanning, more exposure to the sun and more early

screening. "

The tumors also develop more frequently in patients with compromised

autoimmune systems and in conjunction with certain genetic diseases, he added.

The good news is that survival rates are relatively high: 99 percent over

five years if the tumors are caught early and confined to one area and 43

percent if the cancer has spread.

A broader-based population study is needed to confirm the findings, Toro

said.