Sunscreens and photoprotection

Abstract

Skin cancer incidence is continuously increasing, and sun exposure has been indicated as the primary cause of such an explosion in prevalence. The phenom-enon is particularly pronounced among Caucasians living in developed countries, suggesting that some changes in lifestyle may be the main trigger. Generally, most people consider suntan as a sign of physi-cal and social wellbeing, and the desire to acquire a suntan has promoted holidays in sunny countries, also out of season. Furthermore, the use of artificial tanning devices that emit UVA/UVB radiation has become increasingly popular among young people, especially females.In this scenario a change of direction can be obtained by education on the cor-rect way to enjoy sun exposure from child-hood, but this requires a large organiza-tional effort, which is difficult to achieve in a short time. In the immediate future, the implementation of cutaneous photo-protection appears more feasible. In fact, the large-scale use of products able to neu-tralize the UV radiation has been advo-cated by many international institutions as the most appropriate means to reduce skin damage from solar radiation, namely photoaging and photocarcinogenesis.The photoprotection products have to provide evidence of protective ability against solar radiation and, simultane-ously, given their wide use, must be toxi-cologically safe. Both these requirements are encompassed by the current laws that provide lists of permitted substances. Achieving these goals has required, and still requires, great effort in identifying suitable ingredients and technologically advanced and safe formulations.This special focus issue on ‘Sunscreens and photoprotection’ highlights recent advances in the technology of products, and also provides an update on the main dermatological pathologies that could be prevented with photoprotection.The issue begins with an editorial by Friedman