Does winter darkness in the Arctic protect against cancer? The melatonin hypothesis revisited

Abstract

The melatonin hypothesis states that excess exposure to environmental light may contribute to breast cancer risks via impaired pineal secretion of melatonin. A corollary, not considered previously, is that a net annual increase in oncostatic melatonin would be expected in persons who experience a light deficit during extended winter darkness periods; thus, hormone-dependent cancers should occur less frequently in people who reside north, rather than south, of the Arctic circle. Consistent with our prediction, epidemiological data indicate uniformly low risks for hormone-dependent cancers in the Arctic. The available literature on genetic, reproductive, nutritional, life-style, and environmental risk factors provides no obvious clues to the observed cancer patterns. Moreover, diurnal and 24-hour melatonin concentrations in humans living in Arctic regions were reported as high in November–January, when light intensity is low. Since these observations are consistent with our corollary and the associated prediction, we suggest that research on a melatonin-inhibited carcinogenesis in the low-risk populations of the Arctic should be pursued.