Association of UV Index, Latitude, and Melanoma Incidence in Nonwhite Populations—US Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) Program, 1992 to 2001

Abstract

To estimate the association between UV index, latitude, and melanoma incidence in different racial and ethnic populations in a high-quality national data set. Descriptive study. Eleven US cancer registries that constitute the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Program (SEER-11). Patients with malignant melanoma of the skin reported between 1992 and 2001. Pearson correlation coefficients and regression coefficients were used to estimate the relationship of age-adjusted melanoma incidence rates (2000 US standard population) with the UV index or latitude within racial and ethnic groups. A higher mean UV index was significantly associated with an increase in melanoma incidence only in non-Hispanic whites (r = 0.85, P = .001), although a nonsignificant association was noted in Native Americans (r = 0.42, P = .20). Negative, but not significant, correlations with incidence were observed in blacks (r = -0.53, P = .10), Hispanics (r = -0.43, P = .19), and Asians (r = -0.28, P = .41). Latitude also had a significant correlation with incidence only in non-Hispanic whites (r = -0.85, P = .001). A substantial portion of the variance in registry incidence in non-Hispanic whites could be explained by the UV index (R(2) = 0.71, P = .001). Melanoma incidence is associated with increased UV index and lower latitude only in non-Hispanic whites. No evidence to support the association of UV exposure and melanoma incidence in black or Hispanic populations was found.