The Valley famously has one of the most sun-kissed climates in the world. Residents make their peace with extreme summertime heat by appreciating a flip side all too rare in other parts of the country — year-round opportunities to enjoy the outdoors, especially during milder months.
There’s much to love about our sun. But researchers are learning more, though, whether or not the sun loves us.
After years of underreported data — as much as 78% underreported cases of melanoma — Arizona has gone from, as recently as 2013, having an age-adjusted rate of melanoma per 100,000 persons below the national rate to, just four years later, a rate of invasive melanoma 24% higher than the U.S. rate.
